Rio – Antirrio Bridge: The “masterpiece of engineering” completes twenty years of operation

In August 2004, a few days before the start of the Olympic Games in Athens, Mr Fotis Adrachtasa member of the Alkyoni club, became the first torchbearer to enter the fresh pavement of bridge of Rio – Antirriocrossing the first meters of the newly built project.

Harilaos Trikoupis’ dream was coming true: a bridge that connects the Peloponnese with Central Greece.

The twentieth anniversary coincides with the Olympic Games to be held in Paris and the VINCI Concessionsthe French company that built and manages the project, is celebrating by re-crossing the bridge today with the Olympic flame.

Speaking to “K”, Mr Nicolas NotbarCEO of VINCI Concessions and president of VINCI Airports, describes the bridge as “a living symbol of Greek-French friendship and the VINCI group’s commitment to the country”.

The bridge of Rio – Antirio was the first concession project of the group in Greece. “The concession model allowed us to build a true engineering marvel, one of the longest cable-stayed bridges in the world and the first direct connection, available 24 hours a day, between mainland Greece and the Peloponnese.”

“Today is an important day: we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the bridge. We will have the honor to welcome, together with the Greek Minister of Transport and many officials from the region, the Olympic torch relay of Paris 2024, 20 years after the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004 and the inauguration of the bridge”, adds the CEO of VINCI Concessions .

A success story

The bridge of Rio – Antirio is considered a masterpiece of engineering due to the difficulty of constructing the project, which included a series of challenges, while in the 20 years of its operation it is estimated that it contributed to changing the economic map of Greece.

Before its construction, the crossing of the Corinthian Gulf was done by ships, a process that often inconvenienced the citizens, especially when the weather conditions were bad. The construction of the bridge radically changed the daily life of the residents of Western Greece and the Peloponnese, reducing travel time and boosting the development of the region.

THE Nicolas Notbar emphasizes that the operation of the bridge is a success story, as it has welcomed more than 77 million vehicles.

“We use our know-how to keep it at the best standards over time and we always invest in new solutions, such as LED lighting. We have already reduced the bridge’s direct emissions by 78% since 2018 and intend to continue until we achieve net zero emissions (net zero) by 2050 and zero waste to landfill (zero waste) until 2030″.

Describing VINCI Concessions’ collaboration with the Greek state to ensure the sustainability of major projects, Mr Notbar underlines that the Greek authorities want to improve mobility and connectivity in Greece and his group seeks to realize “this vision”.

“Let me give you specific examples: in terms of innovation, we were the first operator to bring the toll service pay-by-km in the country, using our expertise in free-flow technology. In the environmental transition we implement the biggest network of photovoltaic parks along the highway.”

After describing the bridge as one of the most important in Europe, he says that “we have a plan for its future: we are modernizing the traffic center and the IT system, while leveraging artificial intelligence models through our daily activities. We are currently working on a plan for the installation electric vehicle charging stations in 100% of our service areas by the end of the year. And a few weeks ago we became the first concessionaire in the country to launch a special offer for electric vehicle drivers.”

The CEO of VINCI Concessions sends a message about the group’s intention to continue investing.

“The VINCI group is a historic partner here in Greece. On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Rio – Antirio bridge, our message is that we are willing to continue investing for the future. The partnership between Greece and VINCI is strong. We bring investment, know-how and commitment.”