George Karagiannis: The 10 projects that change Western Greece

In the triptych that ensures the great economic, developmental and social imprint of the infrastructure modernization projects, the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, responsible for infrastructure, Mr. George Karagiannisspeaking at the Regional Growth Conference 2022, in Patras, while he made special mention of 10 projects that change the Peloponnese and Western Greece.

In particular, for him “Patras – Pyrgos” highway, Mr. Karagiannis stressed that the project that had been bogged down for years now has active construction sites again.

“The first 56km. from the Tower will be delivered in 36 months and four months after the project will be delivered in its entirety. This is the reality and can not be disputed by anyone. ” clarified.

At the same time, the road safety project on the existing axis with a budget of € 30 million is “running”, which will be completed in early 2023 with the aim, as the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure pointed out, “to finally stop losing people on this Carmaniola road, until until the highway is completed “.

Another major road project that will be implemented in the Peloponnese is road axis Kalamata-Rizomylos-Pylos-Methoni, with a budget of 250 million euros that goes through PPPs. The project already has a temporary contractor and construction sites are expected to be erected in 2022.

“In Western Greece we are implementing vital projects that citizens have been asking for for years,” said Mr. Karagiannis, adding that “Aktio – Amvrakia, a project with a budget of 150 million euros, will be completed in 2023, while we plan to deliver the Amphilochia Bypass section at the end of the summer “.

Equally important is road connection of Lefkada with Aktio and the Western Axiswith a budget of € 48 million to be delivered in the summer of 2023.

The major railway projects and the Corinth Canal

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport gives significant weight to the development of the railway, where a coherent project program is unfolding.

“We are proceeding in a coordinated manner with the large railway projects that the region needs,” said Mr. Karagiannis, stating:

“We are completing the works and tenders in the sections Kiato – Rododafni and Rododafni – Rio with a total budget of 565 million €, we auctioned the big project from Rio to the port of Patras with the large part of the undergrounding within the urban fabric of the city with a budget of 470 millions and we are proceeding with the upgrade of the line from Kato Achagia to Pyrgos where the train does not arrive today “.

Closing with the projects of Western Greece, the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure referred to an important building project, the “energy upgrade of the University Hospital of Patras”. As he characteristically stressed: “We are upgrading the energy class of the building, turning it into a building with low energy efficiency while at the same time upgrading the conditions for patients and nursing staff in a particularly critical period due to the pandemic.”

The triptych of the implementation of the grand plan for infrastructure

The Undersecretary of Infrastructure referred to the three basic principles that guided the implementation of the ambitious and realistic project plan of 13 billion euros, which is progressing rapidly, as evidenced by the fact that about 8 billion projects have already been auctioned. euro.

At the same time, he underlined: “The economic and development footprint of the projects is huge. “There is a clear social footprint with the 200,000 new direct and indirect jobs in the next three years, but also financial since more than 100 professions are directly related to the construction sector and these projects.”

However, what, according to the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure, has the greatest importance of all, “is how much the life of each citizen will change from each project”.

Institutional modernization and reforms

The Undersecretary of Infrastructure gave special importance to the reforms that have taken place and that “without them, none of the above could have been implemented”.

As he said: “We changed 4412, solving problems of years and making life easier for all of us. We have started a large framework agreement for the provision of support by specialized consultants in the services of our Ministry. We have instituted the process of submitting Standard Proposals by the Private sector. “We set up the Price and Specification Observatory with a large participation of the Private Sector, which will be a reference point in the projects, public and private, something that the market has been asking for for decades and the crisis in Ukraine has shown its value.”

In closing, Mr. Karagiannis sent a clear message that “the projects need consensus and continuity. The mistakes of previous decades will not be allowed to us again. The projects are an investment in the next generations. “It’s the only way for the country to move forward.”