Greece’s most impressive metro station nearing completion

By the end of this year, the transfer of antiquities to the Venizelos station of the Thessaloniki metro will be completed, which will significantly emphasize the rich cultural heritage of the northern capital.

The countdown to the opening of the Thessaloniki metro has begun. According to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the subway will be put into operation and made available to residents and guests of the capital in the first months of 2024.

Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Georgios Karayiannis, together with Minister of Culture and Sports Lina Mendoni, mentioned long-suffering project and the large-scale archaeological work at Venizelos station that had to be carried out, which largely delayed the completion of the metro.

The station is currently in an advanced stage of construction and one of the remaining tasks is to complete the relocation of selected antiquities, which is expected to be completed by the end of November 2023. As for the rest of the work at the station, the construction of the entrance and exit, the placement of infrastructure on both sides of them and the power supply are almost completed.

The area of ​​Venizelos station is 1260 sq.m., however, at least 3500 sq.m. have been covered by archaeological research. The founding stage of the city of Kassandra, which developed according to the system of Hippodamia (Ιπποδάμειο σύστημα), was revealed. Fragments of the Hellenistic and Roman main road were also found, which was surrounded by a colonnaded portico on the south.

The Venizelou station is the third on the northwestern branch of the Thessaloniki Metro and is expected to handle 65,000 passengers per day. In a video published a few years ago by Attiko Metro SA, you can see what the final look of the Venizelos station will look like after it is handed over to passengers. It has a modern architectural design that blends harmoniously with the antiquities, allowing passengers to “immerse” themselves in the rich world of ancient Greek culture.

It was also noted that all 18 automatically controlled trains (without drivers) of Thessaloniki metro have already been officially accepted. Test flights are carried out along the entire length of the highway.

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