The mayors of Glyfada and Alimos express their opposition to the logic of “profits private, expenses public” and the tactic of “heads or tails, we win,” making it clear that if the investors of Elliniko do not assume the operating cost of the tunnel on the coastal avenue, the State should not take it over.
In their joint statement, the mayors of Glyfada and Alimos, Giorgos Papanikolaou and Andreas Kondylis, respectively, stress: “We prefer to endure the traffic burden under an open sky rather than inside an expensive underground tunnel that we will be paying for out of our own pockets”.
The joint statement of the mayors of Glyfada and Alimos is as follows:
“It is known that a section of Poseidonos Avenue, approximately 1.2 kilometers long (from Alimos beach to the Agios Kosmas Marina), is being put underground.
What is not widely known—and emerges, among other things, from reporting by the newspaper “Kathimerini” and the esteemed journalist Giorgos Lialios—is that the cost for the management, maintenance, and operation of the tunnel (which will be paid in perpetuity) is not being assumed by the investors and, as it appears, will be assumed by the state!
Let us briefly recall the basics:
The undergrounding of a section of the coastal avenue was set in motion by the investors a) to connect the area of the former airport with the beach, b) to create enormous added value for the property by avoiding the nuisance of the avenue for the new residences and facilities, and c) to ultimately deliver to the investors a huge unified plot when the current coastal avenue ceases to be used.
The claim that the undergrounding will solve the traffic problem has nothing to do with reality, for the very simple reason that the beginning and the end of the tunnel will have exactly the same congestion points.
For all of us who live in southern Attica, everyday life risks becoming even more difficult:
Now, during rush hours, we inch along on Poseidonos while at least seeing a clear sky, whereas in the 1.2-kilometer tunnel we will inch along in the difficult conditions of a closed tunnel, with all that this entails in the event of an accident or, in general, anything unexpected happening.
The questions that arise are extremely serious. Why is the logic of "profits private, expenses public" being applied?
How can such a thing happen, when for the common areas of the investment, waste management, and the park, special bodies and revenues from the investment itself have been provided for, instead of municipal fees? Why is the same not happening for the tunnel?
We are already seeing with great distress the Region paying millions of euros for the coming years so that our athletes can use sports facilities which they had free of charge at the Ag. Kosmas sports center.
Now the State is being asked to shoulder even more millions for the operation of an undergrounding project that serves exclusively the plans of the investors.
Our positions are clear:
1) If the investors do not assume the operating cost of the tunnel, the State should not take it over. We prefer to endure the traffic burden under an open sky rather than inside an expensive underground tunnel that we will be paying for out of our own pockets.
2) If the State ultimately assumes the operating expense (more than two million euros per year), the area of the old road must mandatorily be returned to the Greek State and utilized for the pedestrian walkway and bicycle path of the Athenian Riviera, which now bypass the area because of the investment.
We have repeatedly stressed that the traffic problem in Southern Attica is among the biggest problems we experience and in the near future we will experience it under even worse conditions, with the new traffic loads of the investment being added to today’s traffic problem.
There is no comprehensive solution study, while the extension of the Metro remains on paper, without timetables, without secured resources.
The municipalities of Glyfada and Alimos have consistently requested the undergrounding of Poseidonos along the entire coastal front as a project of overall vision—not piecemeal interventions, tailored to the interests of each individual investment.
We clarify once again: We have consistently and steadfastly supported healthy development, private initiative, investments with benefits for all, the creation of new jobs, and progress.
But, since the issue concerns car traffic, let us put it this way:
The logic of "heads or tails, we win" cannot prevail”.