INFRASTRUCTURE A STEP DOWN THE ROAD OF EXPANSION
Renewal and revitalization of road, rail, and air networks on an Olympic scale mean that Greece is the world’s largest investor in infrastructure this year

Athens’ new airport, completed in 2001, is considered to be one of the most modern in the world, while 12 new subway lines are under construction

Aiming at successfully organizing the 2004 Olympic Games and reinforcing its role as an international center of transport and commerce in Southeastern Europe, Greece has undertaken efforts to modernize and significantly upgrade its infrastructure with the help of funds provided by EU structural aid packages and loans from the European Investment Bank. An investment of e48 billion in large infrastructure projects between the years 2000-2006 follows a previous investment of e32 billion during the 1990s.

Current nationwide focuses include the following projects, due for completion by the end of 2004:

1) The Egnatia Highway 426-mile axis across northern Greece, linking the northern port of Igoumenitsa with the Turkish border in Thrace. Nine peripheral road axes will connect Greece with Albania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Turkey;

2) The Rio-Antirio Bridge, which links the Peloponnese with mainland Greece across the western end of the Corinth Gulf. This project will serve as Greece’s main gateway to Western Europe through the sea routes that connect Greece with Italy. Once completed, Greece will be home to the longest cable bridge in the world;

3) The Attiki Odos Highway linking Elefsis, west of the capital, with the new airport. This highway will connect 30 municipalities and complete the capital’s external ring road and connections to all major transportation facilities;
and

4) The Patras-Athens-Thessaloniki-Evzoni Highway, which is a part of the Trans-European Road Network. The project will modernize the principal highway network system of Greece, and will cross the entire country. It connects 14 cities, 9 ports and airports, and provides access for many Greek cities to countries of the Balkan Peninsula.

Apart from these major projects, a vast program for the development and modernization of the Greek road networks was initiated in 2000 which, upon completion in 2006, is expected to positively affect trade with neighboring countries in the north and provide opportunities for small regions to sell their products in areas that were formerly unreachable.

Mr. Ioannis Economides, Chairman of Egnatia Odos, the company managing the construction of the Egnatia Highway, believes that the impact the highway will have on Northern Greece will be substantial. He states, “It will dramatically change all the area of Northern Greece from Epiros to Thrace – it brings so many towns, cities, specific tourist areas, and archeological sites out of isolation. The highway will in practical terms be the key factor in the development of all Northern Greece.”

Athens has not been left out of this flurry of modernization. Revitalization and renovation will greet millions of travelers who trek to the city for the 2004 Summer Olympics. Visitors will be greeted with a transportation infrastructure befitting an Olympic City: a new airport now considered to be one of the most modern in the world, new highways, two new metro lines, a new tram network, and expanded suburban rail lines. The extension of the city subway (20 stations in operation and 12 more under construction), is being carried out by the company Attiko Metro and is one of the largest infrastructure projects underway in Europe today.

General Secretary for the Ministry of the Environment, Zoning, and Public Works Mr. George Ganotis says that Greece has long dreamed of carrying out these infrastructure improvements, but it was prohibitively expensive. For many Greeks, this is a dream come true. Mr. Ganotis says, “For the last 15 years Greece has been a changing country from the point of view of infrastructure. Now and throughout the next year, Greece is and will be the largest investor in infrastructure projects in the world. Someone who came here in the early 90’s and returned for the Olympics would not recognize the country.”