Paphos-Polis highway tenders cancelled

EFFORTS to construct a controversial new 31km Paphos-Polis highway have again stalled after the tenders for the construction of the highway were cancelled, reportedly due to a mistake that was discovered in the tender documents as well as due to the high costs involved.

Communications and Works Minister Harris Thrassou said that he was in close collaboration with the Finance Minister to promote the tender process for contractors.

This suggests that the process has backtracked by several months since last May when the Communication and Works Ministry said that the pre-selection process had begun.

Proponents of the Polis-Paphos highway have claimed that the new highway would save lives, since the current narrow winding road is among the most dangerous stretches on the island. Opponents, though in favour of improving the road and even of widening it in places, have condemned the proposed plan to expand it to four-lanes and introduce flyovers and tunnels.