Traveling through the different Italian regions, someone will have noticed that the Local police cars are not all the same: the colors of the stripes change, the symbols on the doors change, even the type of writing changes. While the livery of the Policeof the Carabinieri and gods Fire Brigade is always the same throughout Italy (with the exception of the autonomous provinces), a Local Police car from Lombardy and one from Lazio are in fact different, with colors that vary from green to blue and red.
The reason for these differences has to do with the distribution of competences between State and Regions: given that the organization and functioning of the Local Police fall under regional competence, each administration independently chooses colors and symbols for the Local Police vehicles.
Because the liveries of the Local Police are different based on the Region
To understand in detail the reason for these differences we must start from Constitution. With the reform of Title V (through constitutional law no. 3 of 2001), article 117 was modified, which regulates the division of competences between the State and the Regions. Since then the “Local Administrative Police” has passed under the legislative competence of the Regionswhile the State remains exclusive jurisdiction on “public order and security”.
In practice, therefore, it is the Regions that establish how the Local Police is organized and how it functions in their territory.
Added to this is law no. 65 of 1986, the so-called “framework law on the organization of the municipal police”, which in article 6 entrusts precisely to regional laws the task of determine the characteristics of uniforms and rank badges and to regulate the characteristics of the means and operational tools supplied to the Corps and services. The only restriction imposed concerns the similarity: the uniforms of the Local Police must be visually different from those of the Police Forces and the State Armed Forces.
Clearly, as there are no specific requirements, each Region establishes its own rules. It must be said, however, that this fragmentation is at the center of attempts at national reform: they have been discussed in Parliament for years bills to reorganize the entire matter, some of which propose to assign each body the same unique denomination of “Local Police” throughout Italy.
Among other things, perhaps not everyone knows that the term “Traffic Police” is actually wrong and obsolete (even if it is still used in common language), as confirmed by the Local Police: the correct name is Local Police, which can be divided into Police Municipalif located in a Municipality or in a Union of Municipalities, e Provincial Police if part of Provinces or Metropolitan Cities.
From Lombardy to Emilia-Romagna: some examples
So let’s take some practical examples: in Lombardy the Local Police car has a white bodywork and a green band (which reflects the color of the regional flag) between 15 and 25 centimeters high, with the white/green checkered ends. In the center of the band the writing “Local Police” appears in white, created with Helvetica Black font, while the name of the organization appears in green on the doors. The symbol that characterizes everything is the Rosa Camunathe ideogram contained in the Region’s brand.
In Emilia-RomagnaHowever, the picture changes. Regional regulations require a basic white bodywork, with a 15 centimeter blue reflective strip. The writing is in white with the Helvetica italic font and is even accompanied by the translation into the main European languages (Local Police – Stadtpolizei – Police Locale – Policía Local) located in a gray band. The regional symbol appears on the bonnet.
In CampaniaHowever, the regional regulation distinguishes between Municipal and Provincial based on the colour. On the white bodywork, the writing “Municipal Police” is in white inside a blue stripe, while the “Provincial Police” travels inside a green stripe. The coat of arms of the relevant local authority (Province, Municipality, etc.) appears on the front fenders.
Three Regions, three completely different vehicles, including colours, characters and symbols. And the same goes for all the other regions, each with their own rules.
