Greeks not paying for toll roads now.
Discussion
It's becoming a farce, German company builds the infrastructure but staff just nodding friends through, full story:
Greece’s toll roads have become an unlikely flashpoint in the financial skirmishing between the sick economy of the eurozone and its unwanted saviour, Germany.
It has emerged that the Greek austerity resitance movement whose slogan is “we won’t pay”, has extended from simply refusing to pay taxes to the unfortunate fall-out from the country’s drivers declining to pay up at the toll booths of the country’s motorways.
Recent months of Greek toll aversion has come at a huge cost to Hochtief which runs two of Greece’s biggest pay-to-drive motorway schemes. Hochtief is a symbol of Germany’s post war commercial expansionism, one of the country’s most successful construction and infrastructure companies. In Britain it is best known for building parts of the Channel Tunnel rail link.
Yesterday however its shares slumped nearly 11 per cent on the Deutsche Borse, the Frankfurt stock exchange, after the company admitted it is likely to have to write down the value of its share of its €2.2 billion Greek roadbuilding consortium because of the mass road-toll dodging movement.
Hochtief is part of a consortium which has constructed motorways between Maliakos and Kleidi linking Athens and Thessalonika and the 225-mile Elefsina-Patras-Tsakona toll road into and out of the Greek capital. In a statement the company said: “The economic crisis in Greece and persistent mass toll dodging has led to major shortfalls in income development for the toll road projects.”
The actual process of toll dodging appears to be nothing more sophisticated than drivers either lifting up the barrier at the toll road to pass through, or dismantling the barrier altogether. Toll booth collectors appear to have let cars through with nothing more than a shrug.
The wider “we won’t pay” movement embraces small business people refusing to pay their taxes and people declining to pay for their tickets on public transport.
There is a further irony to Hochtief being a victim of the campaign. Although a stoutly German company, Hochtief has since last year been controlled by the Spanish infrastructure company ACS, in a rare example of a major German company falling into foreign hands.
Greece’s toll roads have become an unlikely flashpoint in the financial skirmishing between the sick economy of the eurozone and its unwanted saviour, Germany.
It has emerged that the Greek austerity resitance movement whose slogan is “we won’t pay”, has extended from simply refusing to pay taxes to the unfortunate fall-out from the country’s drivers declining to pay up at the toll booths of the country’s motorways.
Recent months of Greek toll aversion has come at a huge cost to Hochtief which runs two of Greece’s biggest pay-to-drive motorway schemes. Hochtief is a symbol of Germany’s post war commercial expansionism, one of the country’s most successful construction and infrastructure companies. In Britain it is best known for building parts of the Channel Tunnel rail link.
Yesterday however its shares slumped nearly 11 per cent on the Deutsche Borse, the Frankfurt stock exchange, after the company admitted it is likely to have to write down the value of its share of its €2.2 billion Greek roadbuilding consortium because of the mass road-toll dodging movement.
Hochtief is part of a consortium which has constructed motorways between Maliakos and Kleidi linking Athens and Thessalonika and the 225-mile Elefsina-Patras-Tsakona toll road into and out of the Greek capital. In a statement the company said: “The economic crisis in Greece and persistent mass toll dodging has led to major shortfalls in income development for the toll road projects.”
The actual process of toll dodging appears to be nothing more sophisticated than drivers either lifting up the barrier at the toll road to pass through, or dismantling the barrier altogether. Toll booth collectors appear to have let cars through with nothing more than a shrug.
The wider “we won’t pay” movement embraces small business people refusing to pay their taxes and people declining to pay for their tickets on public transport.
There is a further irony to Hochtief being a victim of the campaign. Although a stoutly German company, Hochtief has since last year been controlled by the Spanish infrastructure company ACS, in a rare example of a major German company falling into foreign hands.
They don't pay for their fancy new tube network either.
They installed ticket barriers without any form of gate so you can walk straight through with no need for a ticket.
The stick a couple of plod on the other side in the bigger stations but they only have enough time to stop tourists and pretty girls.
It is a joke of a country, no better than your typical bent, tinpot, African state.
The EU really does need to dispose of it if it is to be taken seriously.
They installed ticket barriers without any form of gate so you can walk straight through with no need for a ticket.
The stick a couple of plod on the other side in the bigger stations but they only have enough time to stop tourists and pretty girls.
It is a joke of a country, no better than your typical bent, tinpot, African state.
The EU really does need to dispose of it if it is to be taken seriously.
Jasandjules said:
nelly1 said:
Ha! Can you imagine that at the Dartford crossing?
It's something we should start. I keep seeing more and more reports about certain roads being pay to use, and that annoys me greatly.
nelly1 said:
So what's that then, PFI is expensive so lets repackage it and use it again. Why do politicians only make sense when they have retired.
tonyvid said:
The Italian rail system is incredibly cheap too, I went to Pompeii from Naples recently and it was only 2.5Euros for a 30min journey - no wonder the Government has no money!
If you really want to, you can go from say, Ealing Broadway to Epping and back for 8 quid in this country 
Just don't catch a main line train anywhere in the UK and you should be all right financially
williamp said:
Dave_ST220 said:
nelly1 said:
Ha! Can you imagine that at the Dartford crossing?
Was that the bridge that was supposed to be toll until it was paid for?tonyvid said:
williamp said:
Dave_ST220 said:
nelly1 said:
Ha! Can you imagine that at the Dartford crossing?
Was that the bridge that was supposed to be toll until it was paid for?tonyvid said:
That's a great idea....everytime I sit in that queue for 40mins(a queue only there because of the toll) it is that thought that keeps me warm!
You are aware that the barrier at dartford just pops out and is made of very soft materials right?? So pathetic in fact that i have driven through it once by mistake iirc and a second time it came down on a trailer load of rowing boats i was towing and simply popped off its mounting and dint even mark the boats.rs1952 said:
tonyvid said:
The Italian rail system is incredibly cheap too, I went to Pompeii from Naples recently and it was only 2.5Euros for a 30min journey - no wonder the Government has no money!
If you really want to, you can go from say, Ealing Broadway to Epping and back for 8 quid in this country Just don't catch a main line train anywhere in the UK and you should be all right financially
I was in Italy in August and you could buy a 5 litre flagon of perfectly drinkable red or white wine for 3.50 euro, and a bottle of name vodka for 5.50 euro. There is serious undertaxation going on there (relative to here at least).
tonyvid said:
Good move!
I did find them all wide open and unattended late one night, it was the 19th Dec last year in the midst of all that snow and freezing nights. They must have decided the wages were costing more than the takings
Teppic said:
tonyvid said:
Good move!
I did find them all wide open and unattended late one night, it was the 19th Dec last year in the midst of all that snow and freezing nights. They must have decided the wages were costing more than the takings
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