Olympia Odos Motorway: new extension under consideration – Which new areas the new road will connect

The next target after the completion of the Patras-Pyrgos highway is the Pyrgos-Alfeios section, according to Panagiotis Papanikolas, President and CEO of Olympia Odos. Speaking at the RGC organized by the newspaper Peloponnisos, he mentioned that this is the first feasible goal in the further expansion of the highway.

“With this section, we reach Ancient Olympia,” added the head of Olympia Odos. He also mentioned that, for the construction of the Alfeios-Kalo Nero-Tsakona section, the issue of the 6 km in the Zacharo area, which has been blocked for years, must first be resolved.

As he said, there are 3-4 alternative scenarios based on which the implementation of these sections can proceed in the future. The sizing (i.e., how many lanes the project will have) has been reevaluated to attract funding. Essentially, it will take more time to finalize a viable project that we will eventually see implemented, as this specific section comprises quite a few kilometers (approximately 90 km).

At the same time, Mr. Papanikolas emphasized that through the concession agreement with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, there are several options for additional projects connecting to Olympia Odos. The most important of these are the construction of a partial interchange at Alissos and access routes to the Araxos and Andravida airports. Mr. Papanikolas stressed that these are necessary options that need to be considered in relation to the needs of the local community.

Regarding the progress of the works on the Patras-Pyrgos highway, the strongman of Olympia Odos noted that the entire project will be delivered in 2025. He clarified that it is technically difficult to open any section to traffic as additional works will be needed to integrate it with the existing road network.

As he said, such a thing could easily happen only in the area of Kato Achaia. The project, which has currently reached 45% of its total progress, is expected to reach 80% by the end of the year.

The completion of the highway will contribute to increased road safety and comfort, and significantly reduce the distance to Patras and Pyrgos, as well as from Pyrgos to Athens. Mr. Papanikolas committed to using the hybrid toll system on the new section, where users with an e-pass pay for the kilometers they have traveled.

The hybrid system of Olympia Odos is now three years old, and according to Mr. Papanikolas, users have saved approximately 7.5 million euros with it. The per-kilometer charge with the Olympia Pass multi-trip card can offer significant discounts to users, said Mr. Papanikolas, citing two examples from Olympia Odos.

On the Aigio – Akrata section, the original value of the Olympia Pass, which was 154 euros, was reduced to 59 euros, a 69% discount. On the Elefsina – Megara section, the original Olympia Pass charge of 101 euros dropped to 40 euros with the hybrid per-kilometer charge, offering a discount of over 60%.

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