VINCI - 2005 annual report

Charilaos Trikoupis Bridge
12,300
vehicles a day
EXPRESS ROAD TO THE PELOPONNESE
CONCESSIONS / BUSINESS REPORT
Prado-Carénage tunnel, Marseilles. Traffi c continued to grow in 2005,
reaching a daily average of 41,000 vehicles. On 24 November, an amendment
to the contract was signed to extend the concession to the new Louis Rège
tunnel, which will be built by a consortium consisting of VINCI and Eiffage.
GREECE. The Charilaos Trikoupis Bridge (Rion-Antirion) was built by the Group
over the Gulf of Corinth (see below). During 2005, its fi rst full year of
operation, average daily traffi c amounted to 12,300 vehicles, the record being
set at 30,000 on Sunday 21 August. Gefyra, the concession company majorityowned
by VINCI Concessions, introduced an attractive pricing policy for local
users (prepaid card with a sliding scale depending on travel frequency) and
heavy goods vehicles, for which competition from the ferries remains signifi cant.
The reduced tariff for fi ve-axle HGVs had an immediate positive impact on traffi c.
UNITED KINGDOM. In Wales, 2005 was also the fi rst full year of operation of
the Newport Southern Distributor Road, where traffi c grew steadily throughout
the period. The concession contract, part of a private fi nance initiative, is being
operated by VINCI Concessions with its partner, Morgan Est. The residual term
of the contract is 37 years. Operation of the Severn Crossings between England
and Wales, near Cardiff, also continued satisfactorily.
CHILE. VINCI, which is already operating the Chillán-Collipulli motorway,
won the 30-year concession contract for the Chiloé bridge. The cost of
construction is estimated at €400 million. Built in an extremely earthquakeprone
area, the bridge will cross the Chacao Strait to link Chiloé Island to mainland
Chile. With a total span of 2,634 metres, this will be the longest suspension
bridge in South America and one of the biggest worldwide. Design studies
are now under way.
Built by VINCI under the terms of a 35-year concession contract and operated since 12 August 2004, the Charilaos Trikoupis
Bridge between Rion and Antirion in Greece brings the journey time from the continent to the Peloponnese down to fi ve
minutes instead of 45 minutes by ferry. During the year after its opening, the bridge was used mainly by cars (84%), followed by HGVs (9%),
two-wheel vehicles (5%) and then coaches and buses (2%). An electronic toll system was installed in April 2005.
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