Filenews 10 May 2023 - by Dora Christodoulou
After almost four decades of continuous and fruitless efforts, bulldozers are now working intensively for the first phase of the new Pafos-Polis Chrysochous motorway. In the area, from Marathounta to Tsada, as the thousands of people travelling daily from the Paphos-Limassol motorway can see, the works for the construction of the new motorway are progressing rapidly.
A long-awaited project, a long-standing request of the Local Government Authorities of the region for decades, has been implemented with multiple benefits for the district of Polis Chrysochous, the district of Paphos and the whole of Cyprus, creating satisfaction in the province, even if the major goal was to create the project from the beginning based on the initial plans as a fourfold direction. However, it is expected that even partially as selected, the new road will contribute to the economic and tourist development of the Polis Chrysochous area, since it will facilitate the attraction of investments in the area, the implementation of new and innovative business ideas, the creation of jobs, and the attraction of visitors and tourists from Cyprus and abroad. The existence of safe road connectivity and the development of economic activity in the area will limit the phenomenon of internal and external migration of the economically active population, upgrading the quality of life of the residents of the area, as estimated by the bodies of the department.
The project concerns the design and construction of a two-lane road initially, from Agia Marinouda to Stroumbi, with a length of 15.5 km and a cost of €87 million. In the future, the road will be upgraded to a four-lane highway. The route starts from the Limassol – Paphos motorway next to Agia Marinouda and ends at the existing road after Stroumbi.
The first phase includes the construction of an interchange to connect with the Limassol – Paphos motorway, a roundabout at Tsada and one at the termination point after Stroumbi. It also provides for the construction of two drilling tunnels of 720 and 290 metres length respectively, five viaducts with a total length of 1,500 metres, two overpasses and nine underpasses. Due to the uphill gradient, additional traffic lanes will also be constructed over a length of approximately 12 kilometres.
In total, the motorway will be 31 km long and will be completed in two phases. For the second phase there is the preliminary study and the competent Departments proceed gradually with the remaining phases of the process.
