The Alikarnassos Bridge in Heraklion got its moment of attention this week — though not quite the kind that involves actual repair. Technicians from the Region of Crete’s Technical Works Directorate arrived for what they called preventive maintenance — in essence, scraping off loose debris while waiting for the long-promised €10 million restoration project to begin.
“We had already removed the rotten parts,” explained a field technician, hammer in hand. “We just came today to check if anything’s hanging, to clean it. Now we’re working lower down — not much left, but whatever we find, we remove.”
In Heraklion, that counts as a success story.
“Preventive” Is the New “Progress”
The inspection team spent the day tapping the underside of the bridge with special tools, checking for loosened concrete, and removing what gravity might have handled first. The goal, they said, was to ensure driver safety. It is worth noting that the bridge remains open to traffic — a testament to either confidence or optimism, depending on one’s temperament.
Why the €10 Million Project Is Still Waiting
According to regional officials, the major maintenance contract — a €10 million project aimed at repairing, reinforcing, and rehabilitating aging bridges across Crete — has not yet commenced. The reason, of course, is deeply technical:
- Pending Traffic Police approval of the temporary road diversions required for the work.
- Administrative coordination delays between departments (translation: more signatures needed).
- Preliminary safety checks are still ongoing to “prepare” the bridge for the repair that has not started.
- And, naturally, the usual bureaucratic choreography where “the process is moving forward” — just not visibly.
Until those approvals materialize, crews continue with what officials describe as preventive action, a phrase that here means “doing small things while waiting for the big thing.”
Official Optimism, Cretan Edition
The Regional Technical Directorate insists that everything is under control.
“The service came here to do a check on the bridge, just in case something might fall,” said another technician, summing up the philosophy of modern infrastructure maintenance in one sentence.
The €10 million contract is still “expected to begin soon,” though “soon” in Cretan civil works can stretch longer than reinforced concrete.
Concrete Truths
The Alikarnassos Bridge remains structurally serviceable — for now. The checks are real, the workers are careful, and the bureaucracy is unwavering in its ability to pause motion while praising progress.
The bridge stands — literally and metaphorically — as a monument to Cretan endurance: nothing falls, but nothing quite begins either.