Greek Railways usher in a new era

The “resurrection” of Greek Railways is considered to be before the gates, although still with undetermined standards. TRAINOSE is about to go under Italian management soon and more particularly to Trenitalia, a subsidiary of the state-owned “Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane”.

Apart from the management changes and after many years of never-ending works, 4 projects are finally close to their completion. When operational, they will revolutionize the transportation map of the country and that would be only the beginning.

With regard to the privatization of TRAINOSE, we are expecting the final approval from the Court of Auditors. According to well-informed sources of Ypodomes.com, all queries raised by the Greek State were sufficiently addressed making the ratification of the contract just a matter of time. If everything goes as planned, by Easter 2017, the transfer of the entirety of the company’s shares package will have gone through for 45mn euros with a concurrent forgiveness of a 750-mn euro debt, balanced with financial aids from previous years.

The next day is still unknown but it is crystal clear that modernizing and regrouping the company should remain a number one priority. On that basis, the withdrawing administration recently introduced a new e-ticketing system and mobile applications. Italian dignitaries have not shown up yet though, waiting for the pre-contractual developments.

Nevertheless, the next Chairman of the company will have to deal with and resolve plenty of thorny issues: the normalization of the scenery after 10 years of endless works and a lengthy crisis that has deprived TRAINOSE of almost half of its services. The completion of the big, ongoing railway projects is a prerequisite for the company to stand on its 2 feet and operate smoothly offering both passenger and cargo services.

A new era

Based on the aforementioned data, the country will be featuring a remarkable railway network in the following years with an advanced capacity to handle freight transportation. In the logistics sector, apart from TRAINOSE, other licensees are Goldair and PEARL.

Passenger routes are still a conundrum. Hopefully passengers will learn to love the train as a means of transport and embrace it as a viable and attractive alternative. The three major suburban railway lines (in Athens, Thessaloniki and Patra) are about to play a pivotal role and function as “revenue generators” for TRAINOSE which will remain a monopoly in the Greek railway market in providing passenger transportation services.

The big questions are about the advancement and finalization of this long-drawn privatization and the meaning of the enigmatic silence from Italy. We, surely, anticipate a creative plan that will invigorate a stagnant railway network and make it profitable and reliable as it should be.

Projects under completion

– Athens Central R.S. electrification (allowing the railway line between Tithorea and the capital to operate with electric trains) and the railway line electrification towards Piraeus

– Athens-Thessaloniki corridor pending projects: Electrified, double track for 106 km (Tithorea-Domokos): 54 km (Tithorea-Lianokladi – Summer 2017) and 52 km (Lianokladi-Domokos – March 2018) along with the modernization of the rest of the railway line towards the northern borders (Idomeni)

– Kiato-Eghio (Rododafni area): It will be released in the second semester 2017

– Thriassio Pedio Logistics Center: A strategic project with multiple electrified tracks, administration offices and storage spaces that will boost cargo transits from Piraeus Port to the rest of the country and Europe.

Nikos Karagiannis-ypodomes.com

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