The story of motorcar legend Enzo Ferrari came full circle last month, with the opening of the Enzo Ferrari Birthplace Museum in Modena, Italy.
A yellow-roofed purpose-built exhibition space has been built next to the old house where the Ferrari legend was born. Although Enzo Ferrari was unable to buy the family home back from its new owners later in life, Ferrari has been able to lease the property for 100 years and incorporate it into the grounds of the museum.
Inside the museum, the inaugural exhibition features 21 different cars, including a Ferrari 125S from 1947 and a vintage collection of Alfa Romeos, Maseratis, Fiats and other Ferraris that were built by Enzo Ferrari in the first half of the 20th century.
While this chapter of Ferrari history comes full circle, another is just beginning. Following the relaxation of regulations governing Europe’s high-speed rail network, Ferrari chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo and Diego Della Valle, owner of luxury goods company Tod’s, set up a company that they said would revolutionise high-speed rail travel in Italy.
Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV) promises high-speed services, luxurious design and interiors, and superlative service when it launches this month, providing an attractive alternative to Italy’s state-owned Trenitalia.
The company has invested more than EUR 1 billion (US$1.33 billion) in 25 new high-speed trains, which will be capable of travelling at 360kph between major Italian cities.
The first services are planned between Turin in the north of Italy and Salerno in the south, with stops in Milan, Rome and Naples, as well as a service between Rome and Venice, according to Reuters.
The Ferrari-red trains, designed by Alasto, feature three classes of travel, with interiors by design house Italdesign Giugiaro. The top-end Club carriage has 19 spacious Frau leather armchairs, each with nine-inch touch-screen TVs.
Onboard services include network-wide, tunnel-proof WiFi service, TV and entertainment systems including a cinema coach, and in-seat dining. Italo lounges at all of the major stations served by NTV will have their own dedicated waiting areas and ticket offices.
Prices for one-way journeys in a private carriage are expected to start from EUR 275 ($365).
www.museocasaenzoferrari.it/en
