Polis mayor discusses Paphos-Polis road with Evep

Polis Chrysochous mayor Yiotis Papachristofi on Thursday night met with representatives from the Paphos chamber of commerce and industry (Evep) to discuss the under-construction road between Paphos and Polis Chrysochous, as well as infrastructure projects in the area.

Representing Evep at the meeting were its chairman George Mais and director Marinos Stylianou, while Polis Chrysochous deputy mayor Giorgos Georgiou was also present.

Mais had in May described the rate of progress on the road between Paphos and Polis Chrysochous as “worrying”, adding that the road is of “vital importance” for the Paphos district and especially for the Polis Chrysochous area, and that any further suspension of work “cannot be accepted”.

For this reason, he called on the contractor and on Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades to “come to the negotiation table in good faith” so that a mutually acceptable solution could be found to the various disagreements which have arisen so far.

The project thus far has been hindered by issues including difficulties in finding suitable materials for the construction of embankments, trouble in the storage of materials at depots, and the lack of basic materials such as gravel and sand.

In April, sources close to the project said most of the materials set aside were considered unsuitable based on the required specifications.

The project envisaged approximately 4.5 million cubic metres of soil to be excavated and about 2.5 million cubic metres of soil to be formed into embankments.

Out of the 1.2 million cubic metres of soil excavated so far, only 80,000 cubic metres – 6.7 per cent of that which has been excavated – have been deemed suitable for embankment construction.

Combined with the difficulty in finding suitable materials, this prolongs construction timelines and could risk as much as a tenfold increase in the time required to carry out the project.

During a House transport committee visit to the site in April, it was heard that the first phase of the project, connecting the villages of Ayia Marinouda and Stroumbi, should be completed by the end of the year.

However, Mais doubted this assessment on Monday, describing the aim as “unattainable” as only 30 per cent of the project has so far been completed.

In addition to the matter of the road, the meeting also touched on the expansion of the Latsi port, as well as other projects, including the bicycle path connecting Polis Chrysochous and Latsi and renovations to the town hall and old police station.

On the matter of Latsi, proposals were also heard for the creation of a craft district in the village, as well as the construction of a multipurpose sea and culture centre.