Progress on Paphos projects says minister

Transport Minister Marios Demetriades said on Sunday that a number of infrastructure projects in Paphos are well underway.

Speaking after a memorial service for victims of the 1974 invasion in Paphos, Demetriades said that the tender documents for the improvement of the Paphos-Polis road were at the final stage of preparation.  The invitation for tenders will made at the end of July or beginning of September.

At the same time the preparation of tenders’ documents for the construction of the new Paphos to Polis road, were also being prepared and the invitation for offers would be made in 2018, said the minister.

The tender for the new road was expected to be announced early in 2018 with the project kicking off towards the end of that year. The new highway, a project pending for decades, is expected to be completed in 2021 and would cut travel time between Paphos and Polis significantly.

“All projects announced by the President (Nicos Anastasiades) the last three years are well underway,” Demetriades said. “The recovery of the economy and the correct economic policies we have followed as a government in recent years, allowed us to move on these very important projects that improve the quality of life of our compatriots”.

Demetriades said that the projects concerning the improvement of the Paphos road network were progressing, and that plans were underway for the expansion of the Latchi harbour, so it could provide more berths.

Regarding the road from Paphos to the airport, Demetriades said it was being re-designed following problems arising from environmental studies. The aim was to receive the green light from the environment department, he said.

“The truth is that we will go with the expensive option, which will cost between €25m and €30m,” Demetriades said.

In addition to the road network, construction is also underway for a breakwater in Paphos’ western coastal front, he said, in the area of Venus Beach. The beach has been labelled ‘dangerous for swimming’ because of rip currents that claimed several lives over the years.

A number of other breakwaters are being constructed in Yeroskipou and Latchi, Demetriades said, while a study is underway concerning the rest of the coastal front of Paphos.

Works at the Paphos Museum, which is undergoing renovation, are to be completed within the year.

 

 

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