A new northern bypass road will be built around Limassol, as part of a wider effort to ease congestion in Cyprus’ second city, Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades announced on Friday.

The road is part of what the transport ministry described as a “comprehensive” plan, which will “create alternative routes, improve traffic distribution, and provide substantial relief in areas where there is heavy congestion”.

In line with this, the northern bypass has been described as the “most important project” of the plan. The ministry said the new road will “channel traffic outside the densely built urban fabric”.

The road will be built in five parts, and will eventually connect the city from east to west, allowing motorists to avoid the existing and often congested motorway which runs through the city’s suburbs.

Other projects in the plan include a motorway heading north out of the city towards the Saittas reservoir, near the village of Moniatis, on the way to the Troodos mountains, as well as suburban roads in areas with high levels of traffic, including a new road linking Ypsonas and Polemidia.

The ministry said that “these projects aim to improve connections between individual areas, enhance alternative routes, and relieve congestion on the city’s main road axes”.

transport ministry, transport minister, Vafeades

As well as the construction of new roads, the ministry also put forward plans to introduce smart traffic lights at 50 new locations across the city, which it said will allow for “better coordination of traffic lights and the adaptation of their operation to real traffic conditions”.

Newspaper Philelftheros reported that altogether, the plan will cost the taxpayer €493 million, while the northern bypass alone will cost €182.5m.

At the presentation of the plans, Vafeades said that “for the first time, we have before us a comprehensive mapping of the needs and projects required for Limassol”.

“Through cooperation with the local authorities, we want to agree on priorities and coordinate the next steps. We need to proceed in parallel with interventions which can provide immediate relief to traffic and with the major projects which will complete the city’s road network,” he said.

To this end, he described the northern bypass as a “central priority”