File photo: A Kakavia sign at the Ionia Odos Pedini interchange near Ioannina in 2019. Photo: Stevenmits / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Work Advances on Road Cutting Ioannina–Albania Trip to 40 Minutes

by · Greek City Times

Work on the Ioannina-Kakavia road is moving ahead in Epirus, and once it opens, drivers should reach the Albanian border from Ioannina in about 35 to 40 minutes.

The new route runs for about 70 kilometres north of the city. It forms part of the Orient/East-Med trans-European transport corridor.

On a wider scale, the road also belongs to the “Blue Corridor”, which links Trieste in Italy with Kalamata.

A new video shows the progress so far. It follows the route from the Egnatia Odos junction, past the Zoodochos area and the Ioannina Industrial Area.

Read more: Ioannina Exhibition Connects Greek Producers Across Regions

Where work on the Ioannina-Kakavia road stands

Crews are active at three main points. These are Kosmira, Asvestochori and the junction that will join the new route to the Ionia Odos and Egnatia Odos motorways.

At that junction, plans include a bridge of about 560 metres with 14 spans. Earthworks also continue along the alignment.

The Ioannina-Kakavia road has two sections. From Ioannina to Kalpaki, the first stretch covers 46.4 kilometres with six grade-separated junctions.

These include an optional 1.47-kilometre link at Passaron. A second section will upgrade the existing 23.1-kilometre road from Kalpaki to the Kakavia border station.

Together, the two sections will act as the western north–south axis of the Egnatia Odos.

Crews are building the extension of the Ionia Odos as an expressway. Unlike a full motorway, it has sections of 2+1 lanes.

Antirrio to Albania in two hours and 15 minutes

When the works finish, the main axis will start at Antirrio. It will then pass through Messolonghi, Agrinio, Arta and Ioannina before ending at Kakavia.

Once complete, the full trip of about 264 kilometres should take around two hours and 15 minutes. The budget for the Ioannina-Kakavia road stands at €310 million.

It is the biggest new road project in Epirus since the Ionia Odos opened in full in 2017. The project also joins other road plans, such as a new motorway in western Greece.

Planners also want the road to end the isolation of mountain villages in the area. At the same time, they hope Epirus becomes a gateway for trade and tourism between Western Europe and the southern Balkans.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attended the contract signing at Kalpaki in December 2024. There, he described the road as “a bridge of friendship between Greece and Albania”.

He added that the project mattered above all to the Greek national minority in Albania.

Kakavia, where the Ioannina-Kakavia road ends, is a key crossing for travel between the two countries. Previously, Greece and Albania have also worked together at the border.

According to an update in June on the government’s official roads website, the Ioannina-Kakavia road should be complete in December 2029.

Source: Ta Nea

Stay connected to Greek City Times for Free on Google News
Click NOW
Stay updated with the latest news from Greece and around the world on greekcitytimes.com.
Contact our newsroom to share your updates, stories, photos, or videos. Follow GCT on WhatsApp, Google News and Apple News.

Related coverage

Advertising