I don't know whether this is useful or not, but my wife and I picked up and returned a car in Venice in January 2005 at Piazzale Roma. I checked at the airport, Mestre train station and the P. Roma carpark in Venice for cost and convenience before leaving for Italy. I found that the airport was the most convenient, but the rental car cost quite a bit more than the other two sites.

We elected to buy a three euro bus ticket(included luggage) for the blue bus that goes directly to P. Roma and pick up our car there. The bus left from directly in front of the terminal and tickets were obtained from a booth in the lower level at the noth end. We know Venice a bit and found it to be just as easy as claiming and returning a car at the airport, just the bus ride is a bit longer to the car.

If you would like more specific details don't hesitate to contact me. The train station in Venice does not have any car rental agencies because of its location.

Sam and Cathi Crescent City