Rio – Antirrio Bridge (Charilaos Trikoupis Bridge)
Cable-stayed road bridge across the Rio – Antirrio strait between the Gulf of Corinth and the Gulf of Patras, linking Rio near Patras on the Peloponnese with Antirrio on the mainland. It carries the A5 Ionia Odos (E55/E65). The main bridge is a continuous 2,252 m deck on four pylons with spans of 286–560–560–560–286 m; access viaducts of 392 m (Rio) and 239 m (Antirrio) bring the structure to about 2,883 m. Gefyra SA holds the 42-year concession to design, build, finance and operate it, signed on 3 January 1996. It opened in August 2004 and was named after Charilaos Trikoupis in 2007 (Law 3555/2007).
- Total length
- 3 km
- Open today
- 3 km
- Sections
- 1
Sections
| Sections | Status | Length | Timeline | Cost | Funding | Contractors | Contract terms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main bridge and access viaducts (Rio – Antirrio) Kinopraxia Gefyra, the construction joint venture, designed the bridge from December 1997 to December 1999 and built it from December 1999 to August 2004. The concession contract was ratified by Law 2395/1996 and took full effect on 24 December 1997 at financial close, and the contract set completion seven years later, in December 2004. The concession contract valued the guaranteed construction cost at ECU 449 million (1 July 1993 values), within total uses of ECU 691 million. Opening dates differ by source: Gefyra SA gives the inauguration as 12 August 2004, the UCL OMEGA profile gives public opening on 13 August 2004, and Wikipedia gives an inauguration on 7 August 2004, when Olympic torchbearers crossed first. | Opened | 3 km |
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Contractor roles are as recorded in the award. Only builders count toward the delivery rankings.
Funding
- Loan3 km1 section
- The EIB was the sole lender to Gefyra SA. The master facility agreement was signed on 25 July 1997 for credit lines of EUR 370 million, in tranches of EUR 120 million (2000), EUR 120 million (2001) and EUR 130 million (2003). EUR 349.0 million is the EIB loan in the concessionaire's sources of funds.
- European Union3 km1 section
- State contribution (EU and national subsidy) of EUR 385.1 million in the concessionaire's sources of funds, not split by source. Law 2395/1996 planned it as ECU 150 million from the ERDF, an ECU 50 million ECSC loan to the Greek State and ECU 56 million from the Public Investment Programme (1996 prices). EU Structural Funds contributed in the 1994–1999 and 2000–2006 periods.
- National budget3 km1 section
- Public Investment Programme share of the state contribution; see the EU entry for the combined figure.
- Public-private partnership3 km1 section
- Concessionaire's own equity (Gefyra SA).
A section that lists two sources counts its full length under each: the data records which sources paid, not what share each one carried.
Related projects
- HighwaysA8 Olympia Odos MotorwaySame contractor: AVAX, Aktor, VINCI Construction Grands Projets
- HighwaysA3 Struma MotorwaySame contractor: Aktor
- HighwaysA1 Motorway Athens – Thessaloniki – Evzonoi (PATHE)Same contractor: Aktor
- HighwaysA5 Ionia Odos (Antirrio – Ioannina)Same contractor: AVAX
- RailwaysAthens Metro Line 4, Section A (Alsos Veikou – Goudi)Same contractor: AVAX
- HighwaysBOAK Northern Crete Motorway (Kissamos – Agios Nikolaos)Same contractor: Aktor
Sources
- Wikipedia: Rio–Antirrio Bridgeread Sep 28, 2026
- Greek Wikipedia: Γέφυρα Ρίου-Αντιρρίουread Sep 28, 2026
- Gefyra SA: Ένα Μεγάλο Όραμα (project history)read Sep 28, 2026
- Gefyra SA: Μελέτη – Κατασκευή (design and construction)read Sep 28, 2026
- UCL OMEGA Centre: Project Profile Greece, Rion-Antirion Bridge (December 2014)read Sep 28, 2026 · archived copy
- OpenStreetMap contributors (geometry, ODbL)read Sep 28, 2026