One of the key strategies for adapting cities to the climate crisis and achieving climate neutrality and urban resilience is the drastic reduction in the use of private cars, replacing them with modern, safe public transportation systems, pedestrian pathways, and cycling networks.
Despite public statements endorsing these principles, Thessaloniki appears still to be following policies that go in the opposite direction. The delayed completion of the main Metro line, the long-standing neglect of urban buses, and the start of construction on the elevated expressway (FlyOver) confirm this observation. Although the central line of the Thessaloniki Metro was inaugurated a few days before our report was published, 18 years after its construction began, it only serves a small part of the city. The western districts, home to thousands of workers, are not expected to be connected to the Metro for decades.
While the rest of Europe effectively implements plans for extensive public transport networks and soft mobility via walking and cycling, Thessaloniki is building the FlyOver peripheral expressway. This is a governmental decision that sends the wrong message to citizens, essentially telling them, “Don’t abandon your car; buy another one.” As part of our investigation, we visited the Konstantinopolitika neighborhood, which is adjacent to Thessaloniki’s existing ring road and will be significantly impacted by the construction of the elevated expressway.
As Alexandros Adamidis1, legal advisor to the Konstantinopolitika Residents’ Association, pointed out, there was no substantial consultation with the local community before the contract was signed and preliminary construction work was begun. Furthermore, the data regarding the project’s impact on the Seich Sou suburban forest keeps changing. “The main reasons for the cancellation requests filed by the Konstantinopolitika Residents’ Association, the Seich Sou Protection Committee, and the Thessaloniki Health Runners Association are the violations of environmental laws and constitutional provisions protecting the environment. This is because proper studies on atmospheric and noise pollution, both during construction and operation, were not conducted; instead, the Ministry’s faulty measurements from the pandemic period were used”, Adamidis emphasized.
Maria Bontila2, a resident and member of the Residents’ Association, spoke to Alterthess about the significant problems already experienced by the local population. “Air pollution has skyrocketed. Atmospheric pollutants have quintupled, particularly PM10 and, more importantly, PM2.5, which are the most harmful because they settle in various organs of the human body, causing damage and even deat”, Bontila noted. She added, “When the project is completed, which we hope it never will be, all the cars coming off the elevated expressway will end up congested right here.” She also stressed the importance of the joint action of 53 Thessaloniki organizations opposing the FlyOver’s construction.
Watch the video of the discussion with the members of the Konstantinopolitika Residents’ Association Al. Adamidis and M. Bontila
Commenting on Thessaloniki’s traffic management approach, environmentalist and former Visiting Professor at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), Kostas Nikolaou3, told Alterthess that policies should focus on strengthening public transportation systems. This would improve traffic flow, create more humane, rapid, and affordable transport options, and reduce fuel consumption, which helps mitigate the climate crisis. “Here, we are doing the exact opposite. Instead of addressing traffic, they are building a second ring road above the existing one, essentially adding another layer. This will inevitably increase vehicle traffic” Nikolaou stressed.
Giannis Toskas4, CEO of Thessaloniki’s Transport Authority (OSETH), a body supervised by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, distanced himself from the government’s decision to construct the FlyOver expressway. In his interview with Alterthess, Toskas stated: “Solving the traffic issue essentially requires abandoning private cars, especially in the city center, something unfeasible given today’s conditions and the prevailing culture of transportation mobility in Greece”.
He added: “At OSETH (the authority responsible for public transport and urban transit oversight), we believe that the only possibility for sustainable development and promoting Thessaloniki as a metropolitan city is to enhance public transportation infrastructure and foster intermodal systems for comfortable, fast, safe, and affordable travel.” Toskas expressed optimism about the continued expansion of the Metro network, projected to continue until 2040.
Michalis Tremopoulos5, municipal councilor and member of the Ecology-Solidarity movement, presented his proposal for a tram network in Thessaloniki. “The tram axis we are proposing can cover areas with high population density and major commercial and administrative functions, while also serving the rapidly developing coastal area and the new Holocaust Museum. It would connect with the Western Suburban Railway”, Tremopoulos explained. He further argued that if this tram proposal had been adopted in the 1980s instead of the Metro project, we would not have been stuck for 35 years as a city with much of the center blocked off due to construction works.
Research and editing: Jason Bantios, Stavroula Poulimeni, Tilemachos Fassoulas
Up Next: Waterways and Wetlands: Their Preservation as a Prerequisite for Improving Our Lives
The research of the independent media cooperative Alterthess titled “Urbal Resilience, Climate Neutrality: The case of Thessaloniki” was realised with the support of Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung-Office in Greece. Read the complete research here.
- The interview with Alexandros Adamidis took place in June 2024 [↩]
- The interview with Maria Bontila took place in June 2024 [↩]
- The interview with Kostas Nikolaou took place in June 2024 [↩]
- The interview with Giannis Toskas took place in June 2024 [↩]
- The interview with Michalis Tremopoulos took place in July 2024 [↩]
