Central Greece Motorway

Motorway 3 (A3), or the Central Greece motorway is a partially completed motorway in Greece. It will lead from the Motorway 1 near Lamia to the Motorway 2 near Grevena, passing Karditsa, Trikala and Kalambaka. It will carry the European route E65.

A3 motorway
Αυτοκινητόδρομος 3
Central Greece Motorway Αυτοκινητόδρομος Κεντρικής Ελλάδας
A3 Motorway near Anavra
Route information
Part of E65
Length	174 km (108 mi)
Major junctions
North end	A2 near Grevena
South end	A1 near Lamia
Location
Regions	West Macedonia, Thessaly, Central Greece
Major cities	Grevena, Kalambaka, Trikala, Karditsa, Lamia
Highway system
Motorways in Greece

Upon completion, starting from the plain of Phthiotis near Lamia, it will cross the Othrys mountains, the plains of western Thessaly and the mountains Antichasia, Chasia and Pindos. Its total length will be 174 km.[1] The concession company is Kentriki Odos SA, which is a joint venture of ACS Group, Ferrovial and GEK Terna.[2] Tendering began in May 2005 and ended on 31 May 2007 with the signing of the contract. The commencement of the 30 years concession period started in March 2008.

The middle section between Xyniada and Trikala was inaugurated and opened to traffic on December 22, 2017.[3] In October 2018 the European Commission approved the funding for the construction of the southern section, Xyniada - Lamia.[4]

History

The concession agreement for the construction of the project was signed in 2008 and the construction, which began in 2009, lasted 2 years and stopped in 2011 due to the financial crisis. At the end of 2013 the concession agreement was amended and it was decided to proceed to the immediate construction of the central middle section, Trikala - Xyniada, with a length of 80 km and costing 547.000.000 euros, while construction of the northern (Grevena-Trikala) and southern (Xyniada-Lamia) section was postponed.[5]

The middle section between Xyniada and Trikala was inaugurated and opened to traffic on December 22, 2017.

In October 2018, the European Commission approved Greek public funding of €306 million euros for the construction of the 32,5 km long southern section of Xyniada - Lamia, linking motorways A3 and A1.[6][4] Subsequently, the concession was sent to the Greek Court of Audit, where it was unanimously approved in early December 2018, and then, on December 20, it was ratified by the Greek Parliament.[7] The construction phase of the southern section is currently underway and it is expected to be completed over a period of 3 years or less, as the 3 km long tunnel passing through the Othrys mountain has already been constructed by about 33% (500 meters from each direction), as of December 2018.[7]

Exit list

Notes
	Under construction
	Planned

Regional unit	Exit	Name	Destinations	Notes/Also as
Trikala
	Planned extension towards Egnatia Odos
Trikala		GR-6 E92 to Trikala and Larissa	Roundabout
Karditsa
		Proastio, Agnantero
		Karditsa	GR-30 to Larissa and Volos
		Sofades
	Anavra
	Smokovo
Phthiotis
		Domokos, Xyniada	GR-3 E65
		Lamia, Lianokladi	GR-38 E952	Under construction (to be completed in 2021)
		Lamia, Komma	GR-3 E65 to Lamia	Under construction (to be completed in 2021)
		Lamia Interchange	A1 E75 to Athens	Under construction (to be completed in 2021)

References

1. Kentriki Odos Archived March 5, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, project description
2. Kentriki Odos Archived March 5, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, company description
3. "Παραδίδεται την Παρασκευή 22 Δεκεμβρίου το Ξυνιάδα-Τρίκαλα του Ε65 - ypodomes.com". www.ypodomes.com (in Greek). Archived from the original on 2018-12-29. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
4. "Επίσημο: Η Κομισιόν ενέκρινε 306εκατ.ευρώ για το νότιο τμήμα του Ε65, Λαμία-Ξυνιάδα - ypodomes.com". www.ypodomes.com (in Greek). Archived from the original on 2018-12-29. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
5. "Η Δυτική Θεσσαλία αποκτά τον δικό της αυτοκινητόδρομο, στην κυκλοφορία το Ξυνιάδα-Τρίκαλα του Ε65 - ypodomes.com". www.ypodomes.com (in Greek). Archived from the original on 2018-12-29. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
6. "European Commission - PRESS RELEASES - Press release - State aid: Commission approves €306 million in Greek public funding for the construction of southern section of E65 motorway". europa.eu. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
7. "Αυτοκινητόδρομος Ε65: Κυρώθηκε από τη Βουλή το Λαμία-Ξυνιάδα, το έργο ξεκινά - ypodomes.com". www.ypodomes.com (in Greek). Archived from the original on 2018-12-29. Retrieved 2018-12-29.