On 20 February 1907, the Società Anonima Trams Elettrici Comensi (SATEC), which in 1906 had taken over operation of the Como tramway network, was instructed to build a network of intercity lines to connect the city with the main neighbouring towns, which included the Como-Appiano Gentile-Mozzate link, designed to connect the large towns in the south-west, and in particular Appiano Gentile.
The line would then proceed to Mozzate, the location of a railway station on the Saronno-Varese-Laveno line.