The Minister of Transport, Alexis Vafeadis, did exercises on paper in order to have a better picture of the cost of the Paphos-Polis Chrysochous road and in particular for the section from Stroumbi to Polis.
As filenews is informed, the minister asked a professional who is familiar with the construction sector in road construction projects, to estimate the cost of constructing intercity roads per kilometer, so that both he and the government know whether any bids submitted are inflated at the expense of the state and by extension the taxpayer.
Of course, the information was informal, but it helps to have a second opinion in relation to the requirements of the contractors, although the estimates of the state services involved, which are usually considered conservative by the contractors, are the compass. Of course, it is recognized that each road has its own peculiarities, so the cost may vary partially on a case-by-case basis.
As for the cost of the second phase, it is estimated that it will be around €100 million.
A meeting is being held today in Paphos with provincial bodies, on the subject of "coordination for the announcement of a tender for the construction of Section II", of the Paphos-Polis Chrysochous Motorway.
The Minister of Transport with whom we contacted stated that the coordination of all the services involved such as the Electricity Authority, the Department of Public Works, the Department of Land Registry, etc. is of key importance. As Mr. Vafeadis explained, experience shows that in many cases, some services work at their own pace, depending on the other projects they have to implement, without there being coordination with the other services that are also active in the same project. In some cases, this leads to the phenomenon of one service being more advanced than the other and waiting for a response from the other, stopping its activity and breaking the continuity of the project. This, in turn, can lead to delays, which, in addition to deviating from the schedules, also lead to claims on the part of contractors, which is to the detriment of the public interest.
We will ask for commitments from all the services involved to sit down to coordinate, so that, in addition to the above, the inconvenience of the drivers is also avoided, said Mr. Vafeadis. He also said that the province of Paphos has been waiting for years for the implementation of the project and relies on it, not only to serve the tourism and other industries but also the locals who are entitled to drive on an improved and safer road, which will also contribute to the reduction of travel time.
Mr. Vafeadis prepared his notebook in which he recorded what is left in terms of the actions of various services, so that the state is able to announce tenders and this is what he will focus on today, asking for commitments as to the time of management of any pending issues. At the same time, it will invite the services involved to express their own positions and submit their own suggestions or indicate other pending issues, so that all the preparatory work can be completed as soon as possible.
