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Minister of Transport, Communications and Works, Alexis Vafeades, is examining the possibility of connecting Nicosia, Larnaca, and Limassol through “a type of train, ideally a high-speed train,” as he said during an interview with Chrysanthos Tsouroulis.
The goal, he explained, is to relieve pressure on the island’s main highway and improve the transport of goods.
However, European funding “does not exist, since Cyprus is not included in the EU corridors for trains.” According to the minister, EU studies have found that a tram system in Cyprus would not be viable, though he still sees potential benefits: “The tram could provide solutions to the traffic problem.”
Two feasible solutions for Limassol
Vafeades said there are two realistic options for Limassol’s severe congestion. “To continue strengthening public transport, to keep identifying groups of the population who would appreciate a cheap route with public passenger transport, and thus convince them to get on buses and remove cars from the network. The second is smart lights. It is expected that they will help, especially in Limassol.”
Asked how more buses could fit on roads already packed with cars, he replied, “Yes, that is also an issue, how many (buses) I can put on the roads. I also have the problem of bus drivers. We don’t even have bus drivers. All these things, I think, describe a problem.”
“We haven’t written off the tram”
On whether a tram could offer solutions, the minister said, “The issue of the tram is also on the table. We haven’t written it off. According to studies by the European Union, however, we don’t have the population density to justify such a project being viable.”
When asked if the idea also concerns intercity connections, he revealed, “Between cities, I can tell you that we are still looking into it. I have now asked that we see how we could consider a kind of train, ideally a high-speed train, which would serve the Nicosia–Larnaca–Limassol triangle.”
He then added, “A parenthesis here: for us to be able to finance this project from the European Union, this triangle must be included in the EU train corridors, which it currently isn’t. Cyprus accepted long ago that we would not have a train in Cyprus, and that the money the EU gives for trains, we wanted it for highways.”
Decongestion and goods transport
“Therefore, we are putting it back on the table and are moving to examine whether the European Union will approve the financing of a high-speed train in this triangle of cities, because we believe that this will not only help decongest the highway, and perhaps also partly the urban centers.”
He concluded, “A train may end in the city center, but more importantly, it will help with the transport of goods within the country, which will reduce the cost of goods and, in the end, will benefit consumers’ wallets.”
