On the final day of the GO!2025 preview season (8 November), Italian Gorizia and Slovenian Nova Gorica released a joint mobility plan designed to make their shared frontier "as invisible as possible" ahead of their European Capital of Culture year. The plan includes a pilot cross-border smart-ticket valid on Italian and Slovenian bus networks, expanded evening trains between Udine, Gorizia and Ljubljana, and streamlined Schengen-area checks at the Casa Rossa pedestrian crossing.
Local mayors Rodolfo Ziberna and Klemen Miklavič said the initiative responds to commuters who cross the border daily for work or study but still face timetable gaps after 20:00. Funding will come from an €18 million EU Interreg envelope and €5 million co-financing from the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. Digital-identity provider TeamSystem will build the ticketing back-end, using QR codes compatible with Italy’s IO app.
![Gorizia–Nova Gorica cross-border capital of culture unveils ‘borderless mobility’ programme]()
For mobility managers the scheme will simplify per-diem accounting for cross-border staff and reduce the need for company shuttles. It also sets a precedent for similar Italian-Swiss or Italian-Austrian corridors, especially once the EU’s Entry/Exit System starts in October 2025.
Event organisers expect the cultural year to draw an extra 600,000 visitors; the enhanced public transport is therefore critical to avoid congestion on the narrow Transalpina Square, which famously straddles the border. Long term, the two municipalities aim to lobby Brussels for inclusion in the TEN-T upgrade of the Venice–Trieste–Ljubljana rail axis.
Local mayors Rodolfo Ziberna and Klemen Miklavič said the initiative responds to commuters who cross the border daily for work or study but still face timetable gaps after 20:00. Funding will come from an €18 million EU Interreg envelope and €5 million co-financing from the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. Digital-identity provider TeamSystem will build the ticketing back-end, using QR codes compatible with Italy’s IO app.
For mobility managers the scheme will simplify per-diem accounting for cross-border staff and reduce the need for company shuttles. It also sets a precedent for similar Italian-Swiss or Italian-Austrian corridors, especially once the EU’s Entry/Exit System starts in October 2025.
Event organisers expect the cultural year to draw an extra 600,000 visitors; the enhanced public transport is therefore critical to avoid congestion on the narrow Transalpina Square, which famously straddles the border. Long term, the two municipalities aim to lobby Brussels for inclusion in the TEN-T upgrade of the Venice–Trieste–Ljubljana rail axis.
