Municipal ‘open roads’ campaign
There are areas of Athens where the prospect of trying to find a parking space pushes some drivers to the verge of a panic attack; the lack of parking lots, the entrenched habit of illegal parking and the mentality whereby people say, «Oh, let’s take the car and we’ll find somewhere to park» has resulted in an impossible situation on the streets and considerable time wasted (64 percent of drivers take up to 20 minutes to find a parking place). Parking on sidewalks, road surfaces or at bus stops is the main cause of delays. No remedial measures will succeed if they are not followed up by sufficient policing, according to the managing director of the urban transport organization (OASA), Simos Simopoulos. In cooperation with the City of Athens, OASA has launched a drive against illegal parking. Two organizations have signed an accord allowing about 600 municipal police to ride for free on all public transport to monitor areas where cars are parked illegally. OASA has recorded 87 areas where traffic is most often delayed by illegal parking. The officers will either distribute parking tickets or report to OASA, which will send in tow trucks to the site.
