The metro in this city on the Aegean Sea was designed more than a century ago and the first tunnel was dug in 1986.
New metro opened in Thessaloniki, Greece’s second largest city The first construction started approximately 38 years ago Conservative Prime Minister, Kyriakos MitsotakisWe opened the opening line on Saturday.
This has 9.6 kilometer sections, driverless automatic trains and platform gates at up to 13 stations. The public will be able to use it completely free of charge for four days.According to officials, the price of an individual ticket will be 0.60 euros.
Although the first underground tunnel was dug in 1986, the construction phase started in 2003. Excavations were also carried out in ancient cities such as Rome. an avalanche of archaeological treasures beneath this coastal city of one million people.
in 2013 the project was about to be abandonedbut in 2015 the Central Archaeological Council I finally agreed to give up moving antiques and we will place them at one of the Venizelos stations. To preserve ancient discoveries, tunnels had to be dug deeper than planned; This caused additional costs and delays. This central station displayed important pieces throughout the underground network, such as a marble-paved section of the Roman road.
“This project offers an extraordinary blend of the ancient and the modern, integrating the archaeological heritage with the metro infrastructure,” Transport and Infrastructure Minister Christos Staikouras said during a guided tour of the metro on Friday.
building rich history continues underground This port city, which has been a permanent settlement since ancient times, has been revealed. A road from Roman timesstale graves Greeks, their systems water supply and drainage, mosaics and inscriptions and tens of thousands of objects spanning centuries Byzantine and Ottoman invasions.
“The project has faced significant delays and many challenges, including more than 300,000 archaeological finds, many of which are now on display at various stations on the main line,” Staikouras said.
Its completion was greeted with surprise by citizens. Those who have been protesting the project for years Due to bureaucratic delays and broken promises. There were also significant delays due to financial problems experienced by the project contractor AEGEK. During the economic crisis that started in 2008 had to suspend payments.
Government sources guarantee cost metro Reached to date 3 billion euros For the first completed line of the metro system Construction of the second line is currently ongoing and its delivery is planned to be made within one year.
Meanwhile, construction of Rome metro line C continues
Line C of the Roman metro has the same problem as the Thessaloniki metro: the unearthing of too many archaeological finds. This is already a pharaoh project marked by delays and rising costs Construction, which began in 2006, has slowed significantly since the 1990s due to the ongoing discovery of priceless archaeological pieces, requiring delicate excavation and conservation work.
completion time, Originally planned for 2000 The scope of the project has been significantly expanded and new estimates suggest it could be completed by 2035. Ongoing delays and technical complexities increased the total cost of the project rose to over seven billion euros.
Despite the difficulties, Line C represents a strategic project for Rome’s mobility. It aimed to connect the surroundings to the historical centre. The presence of many archaeological stations on the route makes it a rare experience where archeology and transportation come together, like the Thessaloniki metro. But the project’s ongoing delays and economic impact raise questions about the sustainability of this ambitious initiative.
