A meeting was held between the Chairman of ATTIKO METRO S.A., Professor Yannis Mylopoulos on the one hand and, on the other hand, the Mayors of Volvi (Mr. Diamantis Liamas), Langada (Mr. Yiannis Karayiannis), Pavlou Mela (Mr. Dimitris Demourtzidis) and Oreokastro (Mr. Asterios Gavotsis); Mr. Gavotsis also represented the Mayor of Kilkis, Mr. Dimitris Sismanidis.
The above meeting was preceded by another meeting, which was held at the initiative of Mr. Gavotsis among the aforementioned Mayors at the Town Hall of Oreokastro; the subject that meeting was the extension of the Metro network to the west areas of Thessaloniki Prefecture, and it was held in the framework of the public consultation already in progress.
Having expressed their content on the new planning of ATTIKO METRO S.A., according to which a circular line will be constructed in the framework of the Metro extension to the west, the Mayors presented their proposal to construct a Metro station in the area where the terminal Station of the Organization of Urban Transportation of Thessaloniki (OASTH) is currently located, at Stavroupoli (Depot area, at the borders of Oreokastro Municipality). This proposal is the first step towards the future connection of the Municipalities of Langadas, Volvi and Kilkis with the city of Thessaloniki.
The Mayor of Langadas, Mr. Yiannis Karagiannis, proposed a similar solution for the connection of the Municipalities of Delta and Chalkidona with the Suburban Railway.
The Mayor of Oreokastro also concurs with the proposal by the Mayor of Langadas, because it is also to the benefit of former Mygdonia community, which is now part of the Municipality of Oreokastro.
Afterwards, the Mayor of Pavlos Melas, Mr. Demourtzidis, presented his proposal on the Metro extension to the area of Efkarpia and to Papageorgiou Hospital and 424 General Military Hospital.
The Mayors also expressed their intention to meet with the Minister of Transport and Communications, Mr. Christos Spirtzis, in the presence of ATTIKO METRO Chairman, in order to discuss matters related to the planning of the Suburban Railway in their Municipalities.
The Chairman of ATTIKO METRO S.A., Professor Yannis Mylopoulos, thanked the Mayors for their participation in the Public Consultation on the extensions of the Metro network to the west of Thessaloniki, as well as for their constructive proposals, and expressed ATTIKO METRO S.A.’s contentment on the progress of the consultation process.
Mr. Mylopoulos then announced to the Mayors the decision by the Minister of Transport and Communications, Mr. Christos Spirtzis, to immediately assign to ATTIKO METRO S.A. and to OSETH the task of preparing a complete Development Study for Thessaloniki Metro. This study will take into account the proposals submitted by the Mayors and involved entities in the framework of the Public Consultation, in order to assess on the basis of financial and technical criteria whether the relevant planning is sustainable or not.
Finally, Mr. Mylopoulos informed the Mayors that during the 2nd Infrastructure and Transport Conference held in Athens on May 15th and 16th 2018, the Head of the Representation of the European Commission in Greece, Mr. Georgios Markopouliotis, announced the European Commission’s decision to fund the extensions of Thessaloniki Metro for the period 2017-2021.
