One-way in the direction of the coast. Only under this condition do the shopkeepers of Anexartisias Street agree to the implementation of specific aspect of the Limassol Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SVAK), which in the long run aims at the complete exclusion of cars from the city’s leading commercial street.
SVAK plans envisage in the first phase the one-way street with a direction from the coastal road to Pentadromos, which the area shopkeepers do not approve. Speaking to "Entrepreneurial Limassol", their representative, and Municipal Councillor Kristis Dimitriou clarified that, "we agreed on the one-way street, for Anexartisias to become a road of light traffic. "Widening the sidewalks so that people can walk comfortably." He said these suggestions stumbled on the insistence of SVAK to close the road from Pentadromos and for vehicles to enter Anexartisias from the coastal road.
"The position of SVAK for a one-way street cannot be accepted" stressed Kristis Dimitriou, adding that "it is like [Anexartisias street shopkeepers] shooting themselves in the foot". Pentadromos, as he explains, ‘’is the gateway to the historic city centre. If it closes, it will cause traffic jams, as drivers encounter a wall.’’
"The Transport Ministry," he pointed out, "wants to prevent cars from entering the city centre, but seems to be unaware that there are not enough means of transport, while there are no parking spaces in the area around Pentadromos, where people could leave their cars."
Commenting on the proposal to turn Anexartisias into a pedestrian street, he said that it would lead the historic centre to decline. "Infrastructure projects must come first," Mr. Dimitriou suggested, "such as parking lots, so that people can park a short distance and enter the centre on foot."
"The issue is under study, there will be consultation with stakeholders and it will be clarified soon," Mayor Nicos Nicolaides told ‘’Entrepreneurial Limassol’’, adding that before the plans are implemented, measures must be taken to improve accessibility to the city centre. The Mayor pointed out that for the implementation of SVAK an amount of €500 million should be spent and for that to happen there must be strong political will on the part of the state to allocate the necessary funds.
