Motorway 1 (Greece)

Motorway 1 (Greece)

The Greek Motorway 1 (Greek: Αυτοκινητόδρομος 1, code: A1) is a motorway in Greece. Partly under construction, it is the 2nd longest motorway in Greece. It is the principal north-south road connection in Greece, connecting the country's capital Athens with the regions of Thessaly and Macedonia, as well as the country's second largest city, Thessaloniki.

The motorway begins at Kifissou Avenue, Athens, just north of the Bay of Phaliro, and continues northward to Evzonoi, on the border with the country's northern neighbour, the Republic of Macedonia, where it continues as the M1. Before the European routes numbers were changed, the northern part from Efzoni to EO2 was E5N while today, the entire road is part of European route E75. The task of maintaining and charging for parts of the motorway has recently been ceded to private consortiums, originally as part of the deal for the construction of the Ionia Odos. Each of them currently enforces a different tolling policy. From Athens to Maliakos Bay drivers pay twice northbound and once southbound, while on the part from northern Maliakos bay up to the intersection with A2/E90 in northern Greece (that part is named Aegean Motorway), drivers pay four times on both directions.

The part west of downtown Athens runs over the Cephisus river and Kifissou Avenue. From north of the boundary of Voiotia - Phthiotis, up to near Velestino, the tollway runs close to the coast of the Aegean Sea. It then continues north of the Tempe Valley and up to the junction of the European route E90. It then shares a 25 km common part with A2 / E90 (on a west-east direction), and then, at the "Axios Interchange", continues north to Evzoni and the national border. Its total length is approximately 550 km.