The announcement yesterday of six major, self-financed road network projects due to be constructed over the next five years marks a big step for the government.

Up until now, the conservatives have seemed rather dormant during much of their year in power, causing serious problems for the construction sector’s labor force and resulting in delays for vital infrastructure; this was a conspicuous factor in the tragic accidents at the Tempi and Maliakos regions last year. The projects announced yesterday will finally complete the national road network, while Thessaloniki will get its much-delayed undersea road tunnel.

The importance of the projects, which were unveiled yesterday by Public Works Minister Giorgos Souflias, does not stop here. Greece’s past record in public works has been marred by lack of transparency, budget overruns, delays and shoddy construction, so the six forthcoming projects will be a big test for the conservative government’s resolve.

Their difficulty level was made evident in yesterday’s presentation. The minister raised the threshold for completion, stressing that the government wants all five projects finished within five years. Moreover, Souflias said that the government wants to have 5 billion of the projected 7-billion-euro cost covered by private sector firms, reducing the state’s contribution to between 1.9 and 2 billion euros.

The challenge is even greater given that the government must find a way to ensure that construction firms can make profits without charging exorbitant toll fares.

That all this will be difficult is no excuse. It is imperative that the government stem the hemorrhage of state funds by streamlining the public works sector and imposing transparency in private companies’ dealings with the state — a failure that in the past has led to blatant overpricing, delays and shoddy construction.

The government claims to have solutions for these problems and says it can carry out quality projects within the projected budget and against a tight timetable. People can only wait to see the results. The government will have no excuse in case of failure.