Transport Ministry assures railroad transport for Spata-Athens for 2004
The suburban railway connecting the Eleftherios Venizelos Airport at Spata to Athens will be ready three months before the city hosts the 2004 Olympic Games, Transport Minister Christos Verelis said yesterday. «The project is continuing smoothly and we can say with certainty that in the spring of 2004, the Eleftherios Venizelos airport will be linked to Athens by an electric train,» he said during an inspection of the work site at the Attiki Odos. The minister’s visit to check the status of the suburban railway project came as Denis Oswald, chairman of the International Olympic Committee’s Coordination Commission, and his team were due to arrive in Athens last night. This will be Oswald’s second inspection this year. Visiting Greece in January to monitor the works, the coordinating head said he was very concerned at the lack of progress on issues relating to accommodation and transportation. He also criticized Greece’s decision to scale back a number of projects due to the lack of funds or time. The government had earlier announced it had canceled the construction of two overpasses along Kifissias Avenue and a new road going toward Piraeus. Nor is the suburban railway project free of controversy. Faced with time constraints, the government has suggested that diesel-fueled trains be used instead of electric, a proposal which Oswald has censured because of the noise, pollution and slow speed of the trains. Verelis said the railway infrastructure would be electric-based and attempts would be made to ensure that electric trains could be delivered on time. The Hellenic Shipyard is currently constructing the wagons. The 84.5-million-euro suburban railway will service a total of 10 stations in the first stage, ending at the proposed central terminal at Menidi. The second stage will see the project extended to central Athens and the third stage to Rendi in southwest Athens, both of which «hopefully should be ready before the Olympic Games commence,» said the minister. Construction companies Aktor, Hellenic Technodomiki and TEV are constructing the railway which is financed by funds from the Public Investment Program. OTE has invested 500 million levs ($225.23 million) in Globul, including the $135 million it paid for the license. Another 450 million levs were earmarked for investment by end-2005, Globul has said.
