Top five facts about the Rio-Antirrio bridge in Greece

·

In 2004, the Rio-Antirrio bridge was opened to the public, linking Central Greece to Peloponnese and drastically reducing travelling times for those crossing between the two regions.

Here are five facts you should to know about Greece’s modern engineering marvel:

1. The bridge connects the cities of Rio, a suburb near the city of Patra, to Antirrio, a small village that belongs to the Municipality of Etoloakarnania and is located southeast of Mesolloggi and southwest of Nafpaktos. That is how the structure received its unofficial name.

2. Its true name is the “Charilaos Trikoupis” bridge, given to it by the former President of the Hellenic Republic Karolos Papoulias back in May 2007 during an event dedicated to its official reveal towards the public.

3. The length of the bridge is over 2,000 metres (2,252), which grows to an impressive 2,883 metres if the vehicle entrance and exit points are added. It is based of four pylons and has been built to remain sturdy even under the worst conditions, such as an earthquake that hits 7.4 on the Richter scale or a collision with a 180,000-tonne tanker.

The Rio-Antirrio bridge in Greece.

4. Despite its late delivery by the manufacturers, the bridge was in time to participate in the festivities for the 2004 Olympic Games. The torch-bearers crossed Rio-Antirrio on their way to Athens, putting this new marvel under the world’s spotlight. One of the most well-known figures who was also the first to cross the bridge during that event was the former Greek football team national coach Otto Rehhagel.

5. The construction of the bridge was the item of high criticism from many publications from around Europe, not only due to its high cost (Rio-Antirrio placed a burden of over 630 million Euros on the Greek economy), but also on the location upon which it was built. More specifically, as The Economist pointed out, there was no real purpose for the structure to be placed in the middle of nowhere. However, a few years later, the presence of the Rio-Antirrion bridge gave the Greek government the incentive they needed in order to invest in other nearby highways, such as the Ionian Odos and the Olympian Odos, offering drivers much safer travelling routes.

Sources: Wikipedia and Structurae.

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

Review: A Cretan culinary journey with Peter Conistis at Ammos, Brighton-Le-Sands

To mark the first anniversary of Ammos at Brighton-Le-Sands, Sydney, Peter Conistis launched his much-anticipated regional dinner series.

Greek Welfare Centre launches 2025 Winter Community Appeal to support families in need

The Greek Welfare Centre will host its annual Winter Community Appeal on Thursday, 24 July 2025, at Marrickville Town Hall, from 9am to 4pm.

Fronditha Care finalists shine in national aged care awards

Ageing Australia’s 2025 You are ACE! Awards are a national initiative that recognises individuals making a positive impact in aged care.

Australia-Greece medical ties strengthen with push for mutual recognition of degrees

Efforts to enhance Australia-Greece medical cooperation were the focus of a meeting between Dr Pirpiris, Dr Pantos and Prof Arkadopoulos.

Cypriot Australian Koraly Dimitriadis wins US poetry award

Controversial, Cypriot-Australian poet, writer, performer, film and theatre maker, Koraly Dimitradis's first poetry book, Love and Fck Poems.

You May Also Like

Erdogan announces reinforcement of Turkish fleet amid tensions with Athens

Turkish President Erdogan announced the reinforcement of the Turkish fleet at the New Generation Storm Howitzers Delivery Ceremony.

Australians of Greek heritage named on the NSW rich list

38 percent of the richest people live in NSW, and Greek Australians: Nick Politis, Theo Karedis and Nicholas Paspaley are among them.

Greek Orthodox faithful, SA Premier celebrate Dormition of the Theotokos in Australia

Greek Orthodox faithful and the SA Premier flocked to their local churches on Thursday, August 15 to mark the Dormition of the Theotokos.