The Region of Central Greece (Sterea Ellada), a pioneer among Greek Regions, welcomes cycle tourism via the Eurovelo 11 route that crosses its territory from Glyfa village and port at the border with the Region of Thessaly down south to Dilesi village near the border with the Attica Region.
Pursuing goals and priorities set within the frame of the Regional Operational Programme for the period of 2014 – 2020, such as achieving a balanced economic and social development, protecting the environment and promoting sustainable transport and sustainable tourism development, the Governor of Central Greece, Kostas Bakogiannis and the executive secretary of the Region, Costas Roussopoulos, took the decision to undertake the Eurovelo project in cooperation with the National Eurovelo Coordinator in Greece, the NGO Cities for Cycling.
The Region of Central Greece, an administrative disctrict consisting of 5 regional units,Viotia, Evia, Evritania, Fthiotida and Fokida, sets off to improve existing infrastructure and sign-posting, as well as to promote sites of natural and cultural heritage.
The selected route of 280 km approximately with 3.000m of elevation gain, should fulfill the following criteria:
• Safety
• Relief
• Natural and Cultural Heritage sites
• Other places of interest
• Other transport connection possibilities
Possibility to connect the Eurovelo 11 route with existing cycle paths within nearby cities will be seriously examined, as well as additional routes connecting popular tourist destinations will be proposed.
The Eurovelo project in the Region of Central Greece will put Greece on the Eurovelo map and will generate business activities related to eco friendly traveling, cycling and bike services.
EuroVelo is a network of 17 long distance cycle routes connecting and uniting the whole European continent. The routes can be used by cycle tourists as well as by local people making daily journeys. EuroVelo currently comprises of 15 routes and it is envisaged that the network will be substantially complete by 2020. It currently consists of well over 45,000 km of bike paths and thousands of kilometers more are planned – when completed it will total over 70,000 km. EuroVelo signposting can now be found in Austria, France, Germany, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia, Switzerland and the UK. The international status of the routes helps with garnering funds and political support for their continuing construction.
The National EuroVelo Coordinator, the NGO Cities for Cycling, will ensure the implementation, operation and quality assurance of EuroVelo and will be responsible for communicating EuroVelo nationally, providing accurate and up-to-date information on the sections of EuroVelo routes that pass through each area and ensure the integration of EuroVelo routes into new publications.