The Municipal Police in Rome have banned sitting on the Spanish Steps

Rome - The Roman municipal police have banned sitting on the Spanish Steps, which ascend from Piazza di Spagna and are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Those who sit on one of the 135 steps face a fine of 160 to 400 euros (4100 to 10,300 CZK). This was reported by the newspaper La Repubblica.

Tourists are not only prohibited from eating near the significant landmarks of the Italian capital or refreshing themselves directly from the fountains, they can now only stroll along the Spanish Steps. On Tuesday, the steps were monitored by eight municipal police officers.

"I understand chasing away someone who is eating, but why can't a person even sit down?" reacted irritably 35-year-old Mexican Marcos Morales, who came to Rome with his girlfriend Laura.

"We are enforcing municipal regulations - one can only walk (up the steps)," repeated the eight officers incessantly. The regulations prohibit behaving in public places "indecently or contrary to decorum" and "consuming food and drinks while seated at historical, artistic, or archaeological sites", especially at fountains and steps, wrote the AFP agency.

Italian art historian, critic, politician, and cultural commentator Vittorio Sgarbi considers the ban to be "an exaggerated, almost fascist regulation." "I agree with maintaining the monument and that no one should eat on the marble steps. But to prohibit even sitting down, that seems excessive to me," believes Sgarbi. "Since time immemorial, wandering travelers have settled on the steps and admired the surroundings," adds the art historian, assuming that the city hall will have to reconsider the regulation.

The steps, from which pedestrians can look down on Piazza di Spagna, are among the most famous landmarks in Rome. The place was reopened to the public in 2016 after a year of restoration work. The steps, previously darkened by pollution, covered in chewing gum and stained with wine and coffee, regained their original whiteness after restoration.

Subsequently, Rome was divided by disputes between those who wished for the steps to be locked at night and their opponents. The current mayor Virginia Raggi of the protest Five Star Movement ultimately decided that the Spanish Steps would remain open at night and be monitored by the police.