500-Year-Old Leonardo Ferry Saves Commuters From Traffic

When a bridge closure created two-kilometer traffic jams in Lombardy, Italy, locals turned to a 500-year-old solution that's faster, cheaper, and runs on zero fuel.

The "Leonardo ferry" has been crossing the River Adda since the Renaissance, linking the towns of Imbersago and Villa d'Adda. For centuries, it carried people and goods between the Duchy of Milan and the Republic of Venice. Now it's carrying frustrated commuters past gridlock.

The wooden barge operates without any engine or fuel. Instead, it's attached to a steel cable stretched across the river and uses the water's natural current to push it from bank to bank. A single operator steers the craft at an angle to the flow, and the physics do the rest.

Leonardo da Vinci didn't invent this type of ferry, but he was so fascinated by its design that he sketched it in 1513. His drawing, "Landscape of the Adda with detail of a ferry," now sits in Windsor Castle's Royal Collection. Historians believe he may have designed the port of Imbersago after studying how the vessel worked.

When the Brivio bridge closed in May for repairs lasting until 2027, traffic exploded on nearby routes. The alternative San Michele bridge started seeing 8,000 vehicles daily, with waits stretching two kilometers. That's when the ferry switched from weekend tourist rides to everyday commuter service.

Gianpaolo Graffagnino started cycling to work and taking the ferry across. "Right now it is the quickest option, but above all the most pleasant, because it gives you three minutes of peace and quiet," he told reporters.

A volunteer crew now runs the ferry on weekdays, including three engineering and economics students in their twenties, a retiree, and the mayor of Imbersago himself. "Today it has returned to its original function: bringing together two communities living on opposite sides of the river," said volunteer Massimo Zoia.

The Ripple Effect

This Renaissance technology is teaching modern engineers a lesson in sustainable design. The ferry carries pedestrians, bikes, motorcycles, and cars across the Adda with zero emissions and minimal environmental impact. A crossing costs €1.50 for pedestrians or €3.50 for cars, and the five-minute journey runs entirely on renewable river power.

The vessel is the last working example of its kind. Four other similar ferries once operated on the Adda but disappeared after bridges were built in 1889. Even Pope John XXIII, born nearby as Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, used this ferry regularly during pilgrimages to a local sanctuary.

Sometimes the oldest solutions are exactly what we need to move forward.