A brand new road connecting the coastlines between the prefectures of Larissa and Volos in Central Greece collapsed just a few weeks before it was officially delivered to local authorities who were preparing for the inauguration ceremony.
The 12-km long and 15-million-euro worth project Rakopotamos-Keramidi was scheduled to be delivered to traffic in July 2025, however, it collapsed on Sunday, April 13.
A thin sheet of asphalt on shaky foundations and thus on a mountainside? I don’t think so…
A prosecutor intervened on Tuesday and ordered the constructor to not make any changes and that the road will not be tampered with until an expert report is made and concluded.
According to local media larissanet.gr, the head of the Larissa First Instance Prosecutor’s Office requested a preliminary examination for the collapse of the brand new Rakopotamos – Keramidi road. As part of the preliminary investigation, an expert report was requested, with the stipulation that the contractor be notified not to change the location until this was done.
The issue was initially brought to light on Sunday, April 13, by locals who posted pictures of the very expensive disaster on social media. Large parts of the road have fallen into the cliff, the surface and barriers are broken.
The 12-kilometer Rakopotamos-Keramidi road, which would connect the coasts of Larissa and Magnesia, was auctioned with a budget of 15,000,000 euros in early 2020 during the term of Thessaly governor Kostas Agorastos and was expected to be delivered to traffic at the end of July 2025.
In a meeting of the Regional Council on Monday, the Governor of Thessaly, Dimitris Kouretas, stated: “This project appears to be in a deplorable state and there may be legal implications that fall into other areas, beyond politics.” He added that the project “has not been completed, nor has it been received and is in the implementation phase while it is being monitored by the technical services of the Region of Thessaly.”
Commenting on the issue, the former Governor of Thessaly, Agorastos said, among others that the study “was approved, the bidding process was approved and the construction of the road proceeded. Studies always precede projects. The financing of the project is secured because otherwise the project could not begin. After [the devasting storm] Daniel, however, new data can be created.”
Current governor Kouretas reportedly said that “the study was for a rural and not a provincial road,” while the ex governor Agorastos said “otherwise it could not have been possible.”