Greek National Road 8

Greek National Road 8 (Greek: Εθνική Οδός 8, abbreviated as EO8, common name: old Athens-Patras national road) is a single carriageway with at-grade intersections in the Attica, Peloponnese and West Greece regions. It connects Athens with the cities of Corinth and Patras. Since the 1960s it has been replaced for most of its length with the National Road 8A, a limited-access toll road that bypasses most towns, as the major route to the Peloponnese. The National Road 8A has been upgraded to a motorway, the Olympia Odos (A8).

National Road 8 shield
National Road 8
Εθνική Οδός 8
Route information
Length230 km (140 mi)
HistoryConstructed: late 1890s–1900s
Major junctions
East endcentral Athens
West endcentral Patras
Location
CountryGreece
RegionsAttica, Peloponnese, West Greece
Major citiesAthens, Corinth, Aigio, Patras
Highway system
  • Highways in Greece

National Road 8 passes along the northern coast of the Saronic Gulf, through the Isthmus of Corinth and further, along the southern coast of the Gulf of Corinth, and ending in downtown Patras. It runs through five regional units: Central Athens, West Athens, West Attica, Corinthia and Achaea. Since the opening of National Road 8A it is mainly used for local traffic in the coastal towns.

Original route

According to the Government Gazette in 1963, the original alignment of EO8 ran from Athens to Patras, via: Corinth, Kiato, Derveni, Aigio and Rio.[1]

Present route

Today, the EO8 bypasses Megara, whereas the original alignment ran through the town.[2] In Athens, the EO8 currently runs via Athinon Avenue instead of Iera Odos and Egaleo.

Additionally, the EO8a and A8 "Olympia Odos" runs parallel to the EO8 from Patras to Eleusis, although it bypasses many villages and towns that the EO8 directly serve. The remaining sections of the EO8a (between Corinth and Rio) will be upgraded to be part of the A8, and the EO8 will become a non-motorway detour.

Apart from the EO8a and A8, the EO8 has connections with (from east to west) the EO1, EO56, A1, EO58, EO3, EO7, EO31, EO5, EO33 and EO9: the EO58, a short airport road to the Eleusis Airbase, also branches off from the EO8.

References
  1. "Ministerial Decision Γ25871". Government Gazette (ΦΕΚ) (in Greek). National Printing House. Β (319): 2500–2501. 23 July 1963.
  2. Athanasopoulos, Dem. (May 1975). Atlas of Greece. Athens: Hellenic Statistical Authority. p. 5.

Further information

Geographic data related to Greek National Road 8 at OpenStreetMap

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