British tourists wishing to embark on a more environmentally-friendly break abroad may wish to head to the popular holiday destination of Italy, where the ancient city of Perugia has declared itself car-free with the completion of its new ‚Mini Metro‚.

The hilltop capital city of Umbria with its narrow streets and massive travertine wall that surrounds this Etruscan stronghold was not designed to cope with the influx of vehicles and travellers that its regular jazz and chocolate festivals attract.

At last it seems the local authorities and inhabitants have decided to put an end to the queues of idling coaches and cars waiting for parking spaces and have chosen to put in place a €š95 million project to install a light railway.

The line begins at the valley floor and climbs for 3km, winding around the ancient buildings and monuments to finally reach the drop-off point in the historic city centre where visitors can enjoy views of the rolling countryside. The journey lasts only 11 minutes.

With the capacity to transport 72,000 visitors in and out of the city every day, it is understandable that many other Spanish cities are now considering similar projects.