The message that “there is no cover-up for the Tempe tragedy, the case is in Justice. It is the responsibility of the political leadership of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure to strengthen transport safety as much as possible and as quickly as possible.
And at the same time, to highlight what were the errors that were made so that we can strengthen the safety of the railways from this point of view as well. And in this direction we are moving”, Christos Staikouras sent through Giorgos Avtias’ show to SKAI.
“In order to obtain the railway that we had in even better conditions, approximately 450 million euros are needed for the railway network”, he added.
Referring to the aging fleet of urban transport in Athens and Thessaloniki, the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport pointed out that “due to the crisis, there was no renewal of the bus fleet for many years. Today, 450 buses and trolleys in Athens are 22 years old, when the average is 13. 39% of the fleet in Athens does not have access for the disabled”, while he clarified that “by the end of April, 110 electric buses will be in circulation in Thessaloniki. At the same time, 150 recruitments have been made at the OASTH and another 40 recruitments have been approved by the Ministry of the Interior”. He also emphasized that “in November 2024, the Thessaloniki metro will be operational”.
Regarding urban transportation in Athens, Mr. Staikouras underlined that 140 new electric buses will be launched in April or May in the capital.
“At the same time, 100 natural gas buses have been signed which will begin to be received in 2024 and will be completed in 2025”, while – as he said – “within the week another contract will be signed for another 200 natural gas buses, which will be received in 2025. By the end of 2025, Athens and Thessaloniki will have 550 new buses, all with access for the disabled.” he added.
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