A plan to revive an abandoned meter gauge railway line in the Peloponnese, aiming to serve both as a historic attraction and for passenger transport, has gained significant momentum with Switzerland’s offer of assistance and expertise, the Athens-Macedonian News Agency has reported.
According to the state-run news agency, the initiative to reactivate Europe’s longest meter gauge railway network was discussed in a meeting between Giannos Grammatidis, president of the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE), and Stefan Estermann, the Swiss Ambassador in Athens. Estermann expressed his enthusiasm for supporting the project.
To this end, Estermann reportedly assured Swiss support for a feasibility study that is currently under way and whose findings will be discussed at a meeting of all the involved parties in the northwestern Peloponnesian town of Nafplio in December. He also pledged to engage Swiss experts with experience in operating metric mountain railway systems and creating attractive programs to promote the ‘Peloponnese Railway.’
Grammatidis, for his part, welcomed the offered assistance and underlined the importance of reviving the railway for passenger, cultural and tourist purposes, with the ultimate goal of connecting places of natural beauty and historical interest such as Corinth, Nafplio, Kalamata, Mycenae and Ancient Olympia, among many others.
Source: ekathimerini.com
