The Padua–Rovigo section, which at that time was in the Veneto region and part of the Austrian Empire, was opened on 11 June 1866, a few days before the opening of hostilities in the Third War of Independence. The missing section, from Pontelagoscuro to Rovigo, was built as a matter of urgency during the war. Civil operations started on 1 December 1866, when the war had ended and the Veneto had become part of the Kingdom of Italy. The whole line was managed by the Società per le Ferrovie dell'Alta Italia (SFAI) until the establishment of the Rete Adriatica in 1885. The line has been part of the FS network since 1905, while management was transferred to RFI in 2001. On 22 December 1985, a rail crash occurred at Coronella (a village in Poggio Renatico), which caused 10 deaths and injuries to another 11. The line has been completely doubled and electrified since 2006 with the completion of the doubling of the Pontelagoscuro–Occhiobello section.