Firefighters remove vehicle from Rome landmark.
An elderly motorist was stopped by Rome police as he drove down a long stretch of the Spanish Steps in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
The driver, aged 81, was unharmed in the incident which occurred at around 04.30 after he drove down the Baroque staircase from Piazza Trinità dei Monti.
The reason for the illegal manoeuvre were unclear and the man reportedly tested negative after undergoing a breathalyser test.
Firefighters removed the vehicle with the aid of a winch, protecting the travertine steps with wooden boards to avoid further damage.
It is not the first time that motorists have driven down the famed staircase: in 2022 the driver of a Maserati damaged the landmark after claiming he “took a wrong turn”, while in 2018 a drunk driver made headlines for a similar stunt on his way home from a night out.
The 18th-century monument underwent a €1.5 million restoration by luxury fashion house Bulgari between 2015 and 2016.
Photo Vigili del Fuoco
