Olympia Odos

Olympia Odos
Ολυμπία Οδός
Route information
Maintained by Olympia Odos S.A.
Length:	365 km (227 mi)
Existed:	2008 – present
Major junctions
From:	Athens
To:	Tsakona
Highway system
Motorways in Greece

Olympia Odos (Greek: Ολυμπία Οδός) is a planned major motorway, currently under construction. The motorway will run from Athens all the way down to Tsakona, spanning a total of 365 km (226.80 mi). Part of the motorway will run parallel to and replace Greek National Road 8A, while parts of it will be upgraded to modern motorway standards. The planned completion date of the €2.8 billion project will be 2014.^[1]

Operation

Olympia Odos Operations will maintain and operate the road for a total of 30 years. Operations will include Two state-of-the art Traffic Control Centers will be built and operate 24/7 in order to handle emergency calls, as well as monitor traffic situations and contact emergency services when needed. Also included, will be 24/7 patrols, worksite protection, timley detection and response to incidents, and special services in the winter.

During the construction phase, routine maintenance and work for all parts of the infrastructure of the existing National roads will be conducted.

Service stations

A number of motorway service stations (MMS) will be accessible or built along the motorway offering motorist services. Currently available/planned ones include:

MMS	Description
MMS Megara	AVIN gas station, Goody's restaurant, Flocafé, bookstore, mini market
MMS Kiato	BP gas station, McDonald’s restaurant, mini market
MSS Akrata	JetOil gas station, Autogrill restaurant, mini market, Alpha Bank ATM
MSS Egio	Shell gas station, ‘175’ café-restaurant, mini market

Construction

The construction of Olympia Odos by Olympia Odos S.A. is the largest and most challenging project currently undertaken in Greece, and one of the most complex ones in Europe."^[2] The project will take six years to complete, and dust, noise, air pollution and potentially heavy traffic will have to be dealt with on a daily basis. The 365 km (226.80 mi) motorway will be a toll-road linking Athens to Tsakona through Corinth and Patras in the south-west of the Peloponnese. 82 km (50.95 mi) of motorway already exist, 120 km (74.56 mi) need to be upgraded and widened, and 163 km (101.28 mi) of new motorway will be built. The project also includes the construction of 19 km (11.81 mi) of tunnels and twenty interchanges.^[1][3]

The project will also upgrade the existing sections of Elefsina-Korinthos 63.2 km (39.27 mi) and the Patras Bypass 18.3 km (11.37 mi) while it will construct a completely new sections of Korinthos–Patras 120 km (74.56 mi), Patras–Pyrgos 87.5 km (54.37 mi) and Pyrgos–Tsakona 76.2 km (47.35 mi).

Construction overview

Section	Length	Description
Elefsina to Corinth	63.2 km (39.27 mi)	Existing motorway; To be modified to current motorway standards.
Corinth to Patras	120 km (74.56 mi)	New motorway to be built; located near or parallel to existing Greek National Road 8A
Patras Bypass	18.3 km (11.37 mi)	Existing motorway; To be modified to current motorway standards.
Patras Bypass to Alphios	87.5 km (54.37 mi)	New motorway to be built; located near or parallel to existing National Road
Alphios to Tsakona	76.2 km (47.35 mi)	New motorway to be built; located near or parallel to existing National Road
Total	365.2 km (226.92 mi)	Full length of motorway after completion in 2014

Construction timescale

The construction phase has two main milestones:

• In 3 ½ years (March 2012) the entire Korinthos-Patras section of the motorway will be completed.
• In 6 years (September 2014) the entire project will be completed.

Timescale	Works completed
August 2008	Start of the operation and maintenance of the entire road from Elefsina to the west of Patras.
August 2009	Maintenance and road safety measures on the existing national road
April 2010	All modifications of the Elefsina-Corinth and Patras Bypass completed
April 2011	Completion of the sections: *Ancient Corinth-Kiato *Arahovitika-Patras *Patras-Kato Achaia
June 2011	Completion of section Kiato-Egio West
March 2012	Completion of sections: *Egio West-Arahovitika *Kato Achaia-Pyrgos
September 2014	Completion of whole motorway, remaining section: Pyrgos-Tsakona

See also

List of Greek roads

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Ferron-Hugonnet, Estelle (2008-08-07). "VINCI Has Completed the Financing of the Athens-Tsakona Motorway Concession, the Largest Ever Won by the Company Outside France". Business Wire. http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20080807005997&newsLang=en. Retrieved 2008-08-15. 
2. ^ "Construction". Olympia Odos S.A.. 2008. http://www.olympiaodos.gr/en/index.php?ID=construction. Retrieved 2008-08-14. 
3. ^ "Vinci : important contrat de concession autoroutière en grèce" (in French). Cercle Finance. 2008-08-07. http://www.zonebourse.com/VINCI-4725/actualite/Vinci-important-contrat-de-concession-autoroutiere-en-grece-553263/. Retrieved 2008-08-15. 

External links

• Official Website