Podium used by traffic police is back in operation in central Rome.

Romans have welcomed back the traditional sight of a traffic official conducting rush-hour transport from a podium in the city's central Piazza Venezia.

The retractable platform has been out of action for an extended period of time but is now operational once more following the re-paving of the square's sampietrini cobblestones.

The podium, which pops up at the flick of a switch, is designed to give vigili greater visibility when directing traffic in the busy intersection between Via Quattro Novembre, Via del Corso and Via del Plebiscito.

An iconic symbol of Rome, the podium was immortalised by Alberto Sordi in the 1960 classic comedy Il Vigile, and more recently in Woody Allen's movie To Rome With Love.

Once made of wood and carried by hand into the piazza at the beginning of each shift, the podium has been in use since the late 1920s and was automated in 2006.

Cover photo: Corriere della Sera