Greek PM Mitsotakis Announces Major Railway Safety Reforms and Modernization

In a significant move towards modernizing Greece’s railway system, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis outlined key reforms during the Cabinet meeting on Monday. Two years after the tragic Tempi train disaster, the government is pushing forward with an ambitious plan to overhaul the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE). The proposed legislation by Constantinos Kyranaqi aims to bring OSE up to standards comparable to DEH (Public Power Corporation). Enhancing safety levels is described as a critical priority, with the ultimate goal of transforming OSE into a new DEH equivalent. The new bill focuses on establishing a Unified Traffic Control Center, installing black boxes in all trains, reinstating carriage supervisors, and ensuring two drivers per route with cameras inside cabins. By September, the European Train Control System (ETCS) will be installed on every train on the central line, providing automatic braking systems. Additional safety measures include precise GPS tracking of trains to prevent collisions and real-time monitoring through a unified control center. Furthermore, the digital platform railway.gov.gr will accurately display schedule times, while recruitment processes will become more flexible and international talent will be utilized. Mitsotakis emphasized that these bold interventions aim not only to improve safety but also to create a culture of professionalism across all levels, preventing catastrophic errors. The initiative leverages European funding and requires consistency and time, addressing decades-old issues. The Hellenic Train will soon be called upon to make investments, answering the collective grief of Tempi not with easy words but with challenging work that yields results.