Olympia Odos
File:Greek Motorway 8 (National Road 8A) - Korinthos Exit.jpg
File:Isthmos toll gate A8 Greece.jpg
Olympia Odos is a toll motorway system on the Peloponnese in Greece. Starting from Eleusis in the Athens metropolitan area, the Olympia Odos motorways follow the Gulf of Corinth to the Rio–Antirrio bridge and the city of Patras, and along the Ionian Sea coastline, in future down to Tsakona (near Meligalas) in the southwestern Peloponnese where it will intersect with the A7 motorway.
Olympia Odos consists of two motorways:
- The A8 (Athens – Patras), constructed in 1962–1973 as National Road 8α. During the 1990s the Elefsina – Corinth section was upgraded to motorway standards. The Corinth – Patras upgrade to motorway standards was completed in April 2017.{{cite web| url = http://www.ekathimerini.com/217608/article/ekathimerini/news/new-corinth-patra-highway-inaugurated-by-greek-pm| title = New Corinth-Patra highway inaugurated by Greek PM {{!}} eKathimerini.com}}
- The southern part of the A5 (Patras – Pyrgos), which passes by the namesake ancient city of Olympia. This motorway is currently under construction.
The {{convert|210|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} motorway is a toll-road linking Athens to Patras and, in the future, will extend a further 163 km to Tsakona in the south-west of the Peloponnese.
History
File:Uni-sea 2.jpg with the Rio–Antirrio bridge in the background]]
File:Olympia Temple of Zeus.jpg in ancient Olympia]]
On 4 August 2008 a public-private partnership deal came into effect with the Greek state conceding construction and 30 years of maintenance of the Olympia Odos motorway to the international Olympia Odos S.A. consortium. In return for the right to collect tolls, the consortium will invest a total of €2.8 billion for construction and modernization of the highway.{{cite web|url=http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20080807005997&newsLang=en|title=VINCI Has Completed the Financing of the Athens-Tsakona Motorway Concession, the Largest Ever Won by the Company Outside France|last=Ferron-Hugonnet|first=Estelle|date=2008-08-07|publisher=Business Wire|accessdate=2008-08-15}}
The upgrade of the A8 (Elefsina–Corinth–Rio) and the southern section of the A5 (Rio–Pyrgos–Tsakona) by Olympia Odos S.A. has been described as "the largest and most challenging project currently undertaken in Greece, and one of the most complex ones in Europe.".{{cite web|url=http://www.olympiaodos.gr/en/index.php?ID=construction|title=Construction|year=2008|publisher=Olympia Odos S.A.|accessdate=2008-08-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090827201320/http://www.olympiaodos.gr/en/index.php?ID=construction|archive-date=2009-08-27|url-status=dead}} It also includes the construction of {{convert|19|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} of tunnels and twenty interchanges.
Subsequently, {{convert|82|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} preexisting dual carriageway of the Patras bypass and the National Road 8a section Elefsina–Corinth) were further upgraded to full motorway standards. {{convert|120|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} of preexisting single carriageway in the Corinth – Patras section were doubled. {{convert|163|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} of the southern A5 section (Patras–Pyrgos–Kalamata) will be newly constructed.
The project was expected to take six years to complete, with a completion date scheduled for the end of 2014. The Greek government-debt crisis however led to considerable delays.[http://www.olympiaodos.gr/EN/index.php?ID=press_releases&Rec_ID=415 Press release Olympia Odos] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924055958/http://www.olympiaodos.gr/EN/index.php?ID=press_releases&Rec_ID=415 |date=2015-09-24 }} 6 September 2011, accessed 31 July 2012. The overall progress of the project in April 2017 was at 95%.{{Update inline|date=June 2019}}
Olympia Odos consortium
The international consortium consists of:{{cite web|title=About us|work=Olympia Odos S.A.|url=http://www.olympiaodos.gr/EN/index.php?ID=about_us|accessdate=18 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150218165346/http://www.olympiaodos.gr/EN/index.php?ID=about_us|archive-date=18 February 2015|url-status=dead}}
- French-based motorway operator Vinci SA (29.9%)
- German-based construction company Hochtief (17%)
- Cyprus-based construction company Joannou & Paraskevaides (17%)
- Greece-based construction company GEK Terna (17%)
- Greece-based financial services company Aktor Concessions (17%)
- Greece-based company Athena S.A. (2.1%)
References
{{reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{official website}} {{in lang|en|el}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Buildings and structures in Attica
Category:Buildings and structures in Western Greece
Category:Transport in Western Greece