Peloponnese roads in disrepair
There is a dangerous spot every 2.8 kilometers on country roads in the Peloponnese, some of which will need almost 60 years of maintenance work to be fully repaired, according to research carried out by local civil engineers. The local branch of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE) presented the data at a seminar on Friday. «The quality of the road network in the Peloponnese is no different to the average situation around Greece. It is old, poorly maintained and totally inadequate for the needs and demands of today’s traffic,» said the head of the TEE in the Peloponnese, Hariklia Tsioli. «The national, regional and country road network need a major improvement and restructuring program while, in some cases, we need new roads.» TEE’s research found that the road surface in mountainous areas of the central and eastern Peloponnese was in need of drastic repair as a result of the snow and ice in the winter, which melts in the spring. Road markings were found to be either inadequate or non-existent, while many roads run through villages where drivers rarely observe the speed limit of 50 kilometers per hour. According to traffic police statistics, there has been an 8 percent rise in the number of road accidents in the Peloponnese, while the number of people killed in crashes has risen by 19 percent – 125 people have died and more than 1,100 have been injured this year. TEE also said that if the state continues to maintain country roads at the current rate, it will need 58 years to make the roads in just the area of Laconia safe. In August, the government agreed on a deal that will see some 280 kilometers of new highway built and another 80 kilometers upgraded to provide better road access between Athens and the western and northern Peloponnese.
