Greek farmers protesting over subsidies blocked 10 of the country's key road links Saturday. The farmers began their protest Friday, using their tractors in four blockades. The blockades were set up 90 and 120 km north of Athens and 70 and 140 km south of the port city of Thessaloniki. Motorists were forced to make detours to avoid adding three to four hours to the usual five-hour trip between Athens and Thessalonki. Blockades were also set up along the east-west highway linking western Greece and Turkey. Farmers' unions plan to blockade border crossings into Bulgaria and Macedonia as of Monday, according to radio reports. The farmers are demanding more state support amid reduced European Union subsidies and falling market prices. The average income in Greece has declined by around a quarter over the past decade, according to farm unions.
Tractor road blocks, snow and high winds were among the obstacles facing travellers throughout Greece on Saturday, where farmers' protests combined with bad weather to delay weary motorists.
The Egnatia highway spanning northern Greece from west to east remained closed by some 180 tractors at the intersections of Kerdyllia, Strymonikos and Chrysoupolis, between Serres and Kavala, forcing drivers to use the old national road to get around them.
Tractors were also ranged alongside the road but without blocking traffic at the N. Triglia intersection in Halkidiki prefecture, at Agia in Larissa prefecture and at the Vogatsikos intersection of the Kastoria-Kozani national highway.
Serres farmers have decided to further step up action on Monday by blockading roads toward the Promahonas border crossing with Bulgaria. At that time they will be joined by their fellows in Larissa and Thessaly, who are determined to block the junction at Nikaia and add yet another obstacle in the path of motorists already having to negotiate the closure of the Tempi pass, where the road has been blocked by a major landslide.
The farmers have decided to forego a road block at Tempi, where motorists are already facing severe delays due to the landslide, but they will range their tractors at the side of the road.
Their demands include an immediate payment of money due to them, guaranteed prices for their products, lower production costs and a freeze of their debts. Those of Larissa and Thessaly are also pressing for a completion of the the Aheloos River diversion in order to top up depleted water supplies to their fields.
Heavy rains and snow were another inconvenience facing those travelling in northwest Greece and Thessaly, where snow chains were needed in the mountains and on national roads between Florina and Kastoria, on the rural road network between Kastoria and Ioannina and some sections of the Volos-Zagora route via Nestorio.
Snow chains were also needed by those travelling on the Trikala-Arta national highway around Elati and the Bili-Mesochora rural road.
Two sections of the Karditsa rural road network were made impassable due to snow, one on the Mouzaki-Arta road and another on the Mouzaki-Petrilos road, while eight regions of the Argithea muncipality were cut off.
On the Ionian island of Zakynthos, meanwhile, the ferry connection from Zakynthos to Kyllini was shut down due to high winds.
16.01.2010
