Filenews 9 October 2021 - by Vassos Vassiliou
More than 90 out of 100 residents of Cyprus use a private vehicle in their traffic on the road network, which extends to approximately 13,000 km, on an island where 645 passenger cars per 1000 inhabitants are accounted for, based on 2019 data.
The main road network falls under the responsibility of the Department of Public Works and reaches approximately 2,491 km of which 257 km are four-lane or six-lane highways, 501 km are urban roads and 1,733 km of interurban roads. The rest of the roads are the responsibility of municipalities, district administrations and the Department of Forests.
The above numbers are recorded in a document submitted by the Ministry of Transport before the Parliament.
The text clarifies that there are no real alternative traffic options, due to the natural conditions (lack of river connections) but also due to the techno-economic data. At this point it is clarified that the development of railways is not sustainable, due to the size of the population.
The same text records what all citizens know, namely that the main Urban Complexes of Cyprus present traffic problems, especially during peak hours with all the adverse effects on the quality of life of citizens such as waste of time, environmental impacts from air pollution, noise, non-rational management of resources, etc.). The above are mainly attributed to the fact that (apart from the deficiencies in infrastructure) 90+% of the traffic is carried out by private vehicles.
Figures cited by the ministry also show that we lagged 30% behind a 30% reduction in road deaths compared to the EU, where deaths fell by 50% in 2010-2020. In this regard, it is mentioned that during the period 2010-2020, a 20% reduction (from 60 to 48) in the number of road fatalities was achieved, instead of 50% which was the Pan-European target which was also adopted in the Strategic Plan 2012-2020 for the Road Safety of Cyprus. During the same period, a 64% reduction (from 586 to 211) in the number of serious injuries was achieved, surpassing the European target of 50%. The decrease in the total number of road injuries in this period was 76% (from 1,762 to 429).
The text points out that 70% of all deaths on urban roads at EU level, but also in Cyprus, are vulnerable users, i.e. pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists/mopeds. For the same period, the death rate of drivers and passengers of motorcycles and mopeds in road collisions was of the order of 30% and of pedestrians 25%.
The same document states that the Strategic Plan 2021-2030 has been implemented and adds that the main quantitative target is to reduce road deaths and injuries by 50% by 2030, compared to the 2020 figures.
The Plan includes 28 individual policies and 158 targeted actions, which are part of the five relevant pillars of the "Safe System".
As explained, the "Safe System" approach aims at a road traffic system that forgives the human errors of its users, which will inevitably occur, and prevents them from ending in road collisions or limits the consequences of collisions, in order not to cause deaths or serious injuries.
The 5 pillars of the "Safe System" are:
•Effective road safety management.
•Safe roads and mobility.
•Safe vehicles.
•Safe road users.
•Effective response after a road collision.
Through the Strategic Plan for Road Safety 2021-2030, the Ministry promotes the following actions:
Modernization of the system for obtaining driving licenses / Amendment of the Driving License Law to improve the examination procedures for obtaining a driving license and the management of chronic apprentice motorcycle drivers.
In this direction, the Ministry believes that the installation of the photo-labelling system will also help. An ally in this direction is the application of a maximum speed limit of 30 km / h in urban cores and residential zones. At the same time, periodic programs of improvement measures will be implemented in black spots and in areas with a high frequency of accidents.
The improvement of the road network also has a role to play
In improving the current situation, the Department also promotes the following road projects on the susceptible national road network, which it considers important:
-Limassol-Saittas Motorway (Phase A: Polemidia-Palodia).
-Nicosia By-perimeter motorway (phase A: Nicosia-Limassol motorway – Tseri Avenue).
-Pafos Motorway – Polis Chrysochous (phase A' : Agia Marinouda-Stroumbi-2 lanes).
-Road Network of the Vasilikos Energy Center (phase A' : 2 lanes) in cooperation with the Ministry of Energy, Commerce, and Industry.
At the same time, the studies for the Nicosia-Palaichori and Denia-Astromeritis-Evrychou motorways are being revised, in order to reduce costs, in order to allow for their financing and direct promotion. Also, the Stavros interchange at the entrance of Nicosia and additional sections of the Nicosia Perimeter Motorway (Phases B3'' & C') are being promoted as a matter of priority in the near future. Also, several projects are in the process of promotion concerning the upgrading of the main road network of connections in the countryside and especially in the Mountain Communities, on the basis of the National Strategy for the Development of Mountain Communities.
The construction of the road Akrounta - Dierona is underway. A significant number of projects are in the process of preparing studies such as improvements on the Limassol-Agros road, on the Alona-Polystipos-Chandria road, Platres-Prodromos, Dymes-Kyperounta-Potamitissa, etc.
