VOAK Completion Drags On

VOAK completion takes center stage as Greece’s Deputy Minister of Infrastructure reveals what drivers can expect until the New Airport of Heraklion opens its gates in (maybe) 2027.

Construction on Crete’s long-awaited Northern Road Axis (VOAK) has taken on the epic pace of a Greek drama—heroes, villains, plot twists, and delays included. Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Nikos Tachiaos recently starred in a production called “Building the Future,” giving viewers an exclusive (and, dare we say, suspenseful) look at why VOAK completion is still a promise and not a memory. He said, “The construction of VOAK is being carried out in three sections,” with the first two—Hersonissos to Neapoli and Neapoli to Agios Nikolaos—well underway, or at least stuck in their opening acts.

Everyone’s holding their breath for the start of the third and most extensive section, Chania to Heraklion, which, in Tachiaos’ deadpan words, will “begin very soon.” Funding is part of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, partly determined by finger-crossing by officials who have learned not to predict dates. As for the Chania–Heraklion segment, the Deputy Minister cheerfully admitted it’s “particularly challenging,” in government-speak, any tourists hoping for a smooth drive should probably pack snacks and patience.

• Chania–Heraklion to start construction “soon”—actual timing subject to infinite interpretations
• Hersonissos–Neapoli: being built by GEK TERNA–AKTOR CONCESSIONS–AKTOR GROUP.
• Neapoli–Agios Nikolaos: AKTOR holds the reins.
• The total cost for all three is more than €2.5 billion, making this Crete’s priciest game of connect-the-dots.
• Partial funding comes from the Recovery and Resilience Facility—completion required by August 2026, if anyone’s counting.
• “A decision has been made to construct a 3-kilometer double tunnel connecting VOAK with the airport in Kastelli,” says Tachiaos, but work is still awaiting yet another environmental study.

Is the Finish Line in Sight for Crete’s Massive VOAK Motorway?

Not exactly, unless you have remarkable eyesight and extraordinarily low expectations for punctuality. Crete’s traffic-weary visitors might wonder if this project is just a bureaucratic roadside attraction. Currently, the Chania–Heraklion concession contract is tied up with the court of auditors, whose approval always adds the mystique holidaymakers crave in their highway planning.

Tachiaos made it official: “Approval is expected soon to proceed with the final steps that will complete the long-standing competition.” Once the contract is approved, Parliament has to ratify it—because in Crete, every contract aspires to the status of law, with all the ceremony of a delayed train. If everything falls miraculously into place, signatures may fly across the page by May. But don’t expect bulldozers the next day—first, there’s expropriation, site handovers, detailed construction studies, and likely more meetings than kilometers built.

• The Chania–Heraklion stretch is the largest new road project on Crete.
• Total anticipated length: almost 100 kilometers—more than enough to lose a rental car.
• Traffic management during construction will cause ongoing detours and “brief” disruptions, the kind that grow into family legends.
• A parallel safety project will attempt to curb accidents, using lessons borrowed from the roads between Patra and Pyrgos.

If everything goes according to plan (has it ever?), construction could wrap up by 2030, with segments opening bit by bit like an underwhelming advent calendar.