Four hours and thirty minutes. That's how long it now takes for the Intercity Express train to travel between Athens and Thessaloniki . Over 30 new kilometres of high-speed rail were added in December on a new "detour" north of Larissa (Evangelismos-Leptokaria). This made the Intercity Express trip a half-an-hour faster than before – and 1.5 hours faster than in 1994. With this new addition, the Athens-Thessaloniki route has also been shortened to 501 kilometres, while well over half of the route is now equipped with high-speed double rails.
Work on the line has been underway since 1990, encompassing significant tunnel and bridge works. The Hellenic Railway Organisation's (OSE) construction subsidiary ERGOSE has overseen construction since its formation in 1997. With the latest works, the entire stretch from Domokos (north of Lamia ) to Thessaloniki is capable of high-speed travel. Nearer to Athens, the section between Enoe and Tithorea has also been finished.
Trainspotting
Speedy travellers may note several engineering feats on the abbreviated journey. There is the new 5.4km Tembi tunnel, with its friction-reducing slabtrack rails, and the 660m Axios bridge. These are the longest tunnel and bridge, respectively, on Greek rails. Work on the new 6km Axios area route was completed in November. In the prefecture of Pieria , also noteworthy are the Platamonas tunnels (between Evangelismos to Leptokaria); these are located on sensitive archaeological territory, thus finds, while opening up, delayed construction for two years. Notable artefacts were unearthed for further study, while insignificant finds were reburied.
On the project, ERGOSE reports that 18 kilometres of tunnels have been constructed, with 30 kilometres of tunnelling remaining. Moreover, two kilometres of bridges have already been built, while another 9kms of bridges are still to come. The Thessaloniki-Athens project, funded 50% by the EU , makes up a significant part of OSE's efforts to expand Greece's high-speed rails, which are part of an EU-wide network. As far as the new routes go, the 32km Evangelismos-Leptokaria section cost 446 million euros, while the 6km Axios section cost 30 million euros.
In the near future, the south-to-north journey will be powered by electricity. The infrastructure for this has been put into place along half of the Athens-Thessaloniki stretch. Meanwhile, new high-speed trains ordered for the route are already serving Intercity Express passengers. In addition, a high-tech signalling system is already operating along the upgraded segments of the route. ERGOSE is also laying the groundwork for an electronic communication system, closed circuit television and GSM-R radio network. As a part of the project, 50 new road bypasses have also been built and renovations undertaken at stations – whole new stations were actually built at Neon Poron, Evangelismos, Litohoro and Aeginio.
The road ahead
The Intercity Express and Intercity trains can now travel at 200kms/hour in sections, while the slower, more affordable, trains have also benefited in terms of time.
Work still remains on the segment between Domokos and Kamena Vourla (north of Athens), before OSE reaches its ultimate goal of covering the distance in three hours and forty minutes. It's estimated this will happen by 2007. Until then, the tough geology between Domokos and Tithorea pose a challenge to workers. The train is now slowest in thickly populated Attika , until more bypasses are constructed for the high-speed suburban rail section.
The latest developments on the tracks have spurred an airfare war between Olympic and Aegean . As to rail rates, they remain unchanged, at least in the short term. An effort by OSE to raise Intercity prices was revoked, due to strong popular opposition. As for what will become of the old rail route, it has yet to be decided. Some segments may be preserved for tourist journeys.
