Genova – stazione Principe – autobus · Krzysztof Dobrzański · CC BY 3.0 · cropped
AMT said on 25 September 2026 that Via Balbi in central Genoa is closed to through traffic every night from 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m., starting Monday 28 September and running through Saturday 3 October, while crews work on the street. The operator lists Volabus with nine other lines that leave the usual Via Balbi path during those hours and resume regular routes after the night window ends.
Anyone using Volabus or the listed city and night buses after 9 p.m. should treat Piazza della Nunziata, Via Gramsci, and Piazza Acquaverde as the replacement corridor until 4:30 a.m. on 4 October, then check the live board before leaving a station or hotel. For a Genoa stay built around walking and meals rather than late-night buses, start with Deep Arrival’s Genoa eating and two-day route guide and keep this night detour as a separate timing check.
- Window: Every night 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m., Monday 28 September through Saturday 3 October 2026.
- Cause: Via Balbi roadworks; Comune di Genova ordinance ORM 1126 dated 25 September 2026.
- Volabus path: From Piazza della Nunziata via Via delle Fontane, Via Gramsci, Via Alpini d’Italia, Via Fanti d’Italia, Via Doria, then Piazza Acquaverde.
- Also diverted: Lines 32, 35, 35/, 618, 634, 635, 641, N1, and N2.
- Same Saturday: 3 October is also AMT’s 24-hour CUB Trasporti walkout; use the live strike post for daytime bands.
Night Closure Hours on Via Balbi
AMT’s 25 September notice is the operator rule for buses. The Via Balbi vehicle ban runs every night from 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. from Monday 28 September to Saturday 3 October because of roadworks. The 4:30 a.m. reopening after the Saturday night shift falls on Sunday 4 October. Daytime service is not covered by this notice.
The City of Genoa’s mobility ordinance ORM 1126, issued 25 September 2026, sets a 30 km/h limit on Via Balbi in that night band and bans through traffic on the work segments, with access kept for authorized side properties and waste collection. Pedestrians still use the street. AMT moved buses off Via Balbi because of that order, not because it cancelled the lines. After 4:30 a.m., the listed buses return to their regular path unless a later AMT update says otherwise.
Volabus Detour Through Piazza Acquaverde
AMT groups Volabus with lines 35, 35/, 634, 635, and 641 for this change. Once they reach Piazza della Nunziata, those buses continue on Via delle Fontane, Via Gramsci, Via Alpini d’Italia, Via Fanti d’Italia, and Via Doria, then Piazza Acquaverde, where they pick up the regular route. Piazza Acquaverde sits at Genova Piazza Principe, so the night path still aims at the station square while Via Balbi is blocked to through traffic.
That is a skip of Via Balbi, not a skip of Principe. If your hotel is on Via Balbi, walk the last block. If you are on Volabus to or from the station square, watch Piazza della Nunziata and Piazza Acquaverde on the stop flag. AMT’s 3 August 2026 Volabus note toward Brignole already used Via Fanti d’Italia and Via Gramsci. This September overlay is the night Via Balbi skip only, not a new daytime timetable.
City and Night Lines on the Same Window
Line 32 is listed on its own. From the Piazza Caricamento terminus it continues on Via Gramsci, Via Alpini d’Italia, Via Adua, and Via Buozzi, then resumes the regular route. That is the waterfront-to-station side of the same works, useful if you are coming from Porto Antico rather than from Piazza della Nunziata.
Lines 618, N1, and N2 form the third group. From Piazza della Nunziata they use Via delle Fontane, Via Gramsci, Via Alpini d’Italia, Via Adua, and Via Buozzi, then resume. N1 and N2 are the overnight city lines, so they sit inside the same 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. band as Volabus for the whole six-night stretch.
AMT named ten lines in total. If your bus is not 32, 35, 35/, 618, 634, 635, 641, N1, N2, or Volabus, this notice does not move it. Metro, funiculars, and the Principe-Granarolo rack railway are outside the Via Balbi list. Do not assume they are suspended because the street is in a night work zone.
Saturday 3 October Overlaps the AMT Walkout
Saturday 3 October is the last night of the Via Balbi detour and the date of AMT’s 24-hour CUB Trasporti walkout. That strike already has a live URL, Genoa AMT’s October 3 walkout. This story only adds the night routing after 9 p.m. on Saturday.
Use the strike notice and AMT’s 28 September urban guaranteed bands (6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.) for Saturday daytime trips. Use this Via Balbi detour for Volabus or N1/N2 after 9 p.m. until 4:30 a.m. Sunday. AMT has not withdrawn the night detour. If you can move a late Saturday connection to Sunday after 4:30 a.m., both the walkout day and the last Via Balbi night window are behind you.
Checks Before a Night Station Run
Before you leave a hotel or Principe after 9 p.m. through 3 October, open AMT’s Via Balbi notice and confirm the date is still inside the published window. Then match the next Volabus or N1/N2 trip to Piazza della Nunziata or Piazza Acquaverde rather than to a Via Balbi stop. If the board is empty, the strike day or a later AMT update may have thinned the night.
Build a 20 to 30 minute buffer on top of the usual running time. The detour is a few extra turns, but night roadworks can stack with traffic around Principe. Keep AMT’s three line groups in mind so you know which street list your bus is on if the stop display is only a line number.
The Comune ordinance keeps pedestrian access on Via Balbi. You can still walk the street at night. You cannot count on a bus stopping there between 9 p.m. and 4:30 a.m. through 3 October. After 4:30 a.m. on 4 October, AMT’s published detour ends unless the operator posts a new date.
| If you… | What to do |
|---|---|
| Ride Volabus between 9 p.m. and 4:30 a.m. through 3 October | Use the Nunziata to Fontane, Gramsci, Alpini d’Italia, Fanti d’Italia, Doria, Acquaverde path; skip Via Balbi flags. |
| Need N1 or N2 after 9 p.m. | Follow the 618/N1/N2 group onto Via Adua and Via Buozzi from Nunziata, then the regular route. |
| Stay on Via Balbi and want a bus at night | Walk to Piazza della Nunziata or Piazza Acquaverde. Buses are not listed as stopping on the closed segment. |
| Travel on Saturday 3 October | Use the live AMT walkout post for daytime guaranteed bands, then this detour after 9 p.m. |
| Can move a late Saturday link to Sunday after 4:30 a.m. | Do that. Both the walkout day and the last Via Balbi night window are then behind you. |
9 p.m. each night through 3 October is the bus-routing gate. Volabus and the nine listed lines leave Via Balbi until 4:30 a.m. Plan pickups at Nunziata or Acquaverde.
4:30 a.m. is the resume-regular-path gate. After that hour, AMT says the listed buses return to the usual route unless a later notice extends the works.
Saturday 3 October is the overlap gate. Daytime travel that day belongs on the AMT walkout URL. Night travel that day still uses this Via Balbi detour until 4:30 a.m. Sunday.
Is Volabus cancelled through October 3?
No. AMT’s 25 September notice reroutes Volabus at night. It does not list a cancellation. Check the live board for the actual next trip, especially on Saturday 3 October when the 24-hour walkout also applies.
What time does the Via Balbi night detour start and end?
AMT says 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. every night from Monday 28 September through Saturday 3 October 2026. The 4:30 a.m. end after the Saturday night shift is Sunday 4 October.
Where does Volabus go instead of Via Balbi?
From Piazza della Nunziata it uses Via delle Fontane, Via Gramsci, Via Alpini d’Italia, Via Fanti d’Italia, Via Doria, and Piazza Acquaverde, then the regular route. That is the same group as lines 35, 35/, 634, 635, and 641.
Does the Comune close Via Balbi to people on foot?
Ordinance ORM 1126 restricts vehicles on the work segments at night. It does not close the street to pedestrians. You can walk Via Balbi. You should not wait there for a listed bus between 9 p.m. and 4:30 a.m.
Which other buses follow a night detour?
AMT names 32, 35, 35/, 618, 634, 635, 641, N1, N2, and Volabus. Line 32 starts from Piazza Caricamento. The 618/N1/N2 group uses Via Adua and Via Buozzi from Nunziata.
How does Saturday 3 October’s AMT walkout change this?
The walkout is a separate daytime service story on the live Genoa AMT October 3 URL. AMT has not withdrawn the Via Balbi night detour for that Saturday. Use both notices if you travel that day and night.
