Maria Eracleous
The new schedule for the Cyprus-Greece sea link is expected to be announced within the next week, or by early March at the latest. As "K" has been informed, Scandro Holding has been in the process of formulating it in the last few weeks, attempting to finalize all the details of this year's sailing schedule in consultation with the ports of Piraeus and Limassol (the contract gives them the right to start either from Limassol or Larnaca or to have a combination of ports).
The company is also thinking about expanding the service to twice a week. The tender document specifies that the vessel should make 22 round trips. This means that for the duration, there will be one sailing per week for the period of May to October.
Negotiations to include Israel in the maritime link have also been ongoing in the past, but this is a scenario that must be considered rather remote at the moment.
Larnaca or Limassol
The Deputy Ministry of Shipping, however, has requested that the company submit all relevant details regarding the ship's itineraries, days, times, and prices by the end of February or early March. According to Vassilis Dimitriadis, Deputy Minister of Shipping, under the contract, the company has the flexibility to formulate itineraries with the ports it consults with the ship it wishes to activate. However, the contract allows for the option of starting the routes from Limassol or Larnaca, or from a combination of ports).
V. Demetriades noted that the slight delay - it should have been around mid-January - is not cause for concern, and he reminded anyone who was concerned that there are guarantee clauses and safeguards in place to ensure the service's continuation.
According to the Deputy Minister, all of the above will be clarified by the beginning of March so that the public is fully informed and can make reservations.
Changes have been made
It should be noted that during the route's first year of operation, there were 22 round trips with the Daleela, which has a capacity of 400 people and more than 100 vehicles. The first trip was on June 19th, and the last trip was on September 16th. There were 15 formal complaints-negative comments, 2 suggestions, and 21 requests for information during the service's first year of operation. The content of the complaints was evaluated, and it served as the foundation for changes aimed at simplifying procedures for embarking, importing, and exporting vehicles, as well as passenger service at the Limassol port.
[This article was translated from its Greek original]
