Athens

Basic information

Name of the public transport authority: Transport for Athens (TfA) – Athens Urban Transport Organisation S.A. (OASA S.A.)

Name of the PTA in local language: Συγκοινωνίες Αθηνών – ΟΑΣΑ ΑΕ

Geographical area: OASA is responsible for the public transportation system in the Athens Metropolitan Area that spans 2929 km² within the Attica region and includes a total of 58 densely populated municipalities. The 58 municipalities are organized in seven (7) regional units, having reached a population of 3.722.544 based on the preliminary results of the 2021 census.

Inhabitants in the PTA area: 3.7 million

Responsibilities

Ticketing: OASA is responsible for the ticket system, ticket sales, ticket inspection and ticket revenue distribution.

Procurement: Tenders and direct awards under certain circumstances and regulations. OASA awards its subsidiaries (OSY S.A. and STASY S.A.) for the provision of public transport services by road and urban rail, tram respectively, in accordance with Law 3920/2011 and REGULATION (EC) No 1370/2007. OASA also follows tender process for the provision of specific public transport services for road transport by other suppliers.

Rolling stock and depot ownership: The subsidiaries (OSY S.A. and STASY S.A.) own their rolling stock and depots.

Public transport planning: OASA is responsible for the strategic and operational planning, coordination and control of the public transport carried out by public transport means in the Athens Metropolitan Area. More specifically, OASA responsibilities cover the service level of public transport, route planning and planning of timetables.

Development of mobility policy / Transport system planning: OASA is responsible for the long-term strategic and operational planning of the PT system. Urban planning or SUMPs (sustainable urban mobility plans) are not part of OASA’s responsibilities.

Marketing of public transport:

OASA’s responsibilities in marketing aim to:

• guarantee the quality of the transport services rendered by the public transport operators (buses, trolleybuses, metro, tram), developing and providing passengers’ satisfaction surveys and mystery shopper survey, in order to indicate parameters aligned with European standards EN 13816, such as punctuality of services / cleanliness of means of transport and station facilities, safety of services, information and tickets complaint handling, appearance & behavior of the personnel, availability of service for disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility
• develop and provide campaigns to passengers promoting new services, apps, or motivating passengers to a proper behavior when issuing and validating tickets, as well as campaigns which meet the needs and expectations of all domestic stakeholders, who are involved in the sustainability of mobility sector
• deal and handle the various complaints submitted by the passengers via phone, e-mail, or by filling a special complaint form in the website.

OASA’s subsidiaries (OSY S.A. and STASY S.A.) also develop and implement marketing strategy in their fields.

Passenger information:

OASA’s responsibilities in passenger information are:

• to deliver real-time information about schedules, routes, and other essential travel information to passengers via telematics stops and monitors, and app, prior and during the journey
• to develop geolocation data in order to provide maps for display in metro platforms about transits to buses and trolleybuses around the metro station
• to design and distribute pocket booklets in printed form with tourist information at central metro stations and airport info points
• to provide a call center, as well as publications on the web site and social media
• to operate info kiosks at central metro stations and the Athens airport

Organisational model

Limited company

OASA S.A, which was established by Law 2175/92 (Government Gazette 211 A) and the provisions of laws 3429/2005 and 3920/2011 is under the jurisdiction of the Hellenic Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and runs the public transport day-to-day operation within the Region of Attica, along with its two wholly owned subsidiary companies (OSY S.A. and STASY S.A). Since June 2014, the OASA group operates under a new brand name as “Transport for Athens (TfA) One city – One network”. Sole Shareholder of OASA is The Hellenic Corporation of Assets and Participations S.A. (HCAP).

Transport service contracting

Not procured by the PTA, but most/all services accept PTA tickets: urban buses, metro, trams

Current developments

As of 2024:

• Currently the “Athens Strategic Transport Plan” is being conducted by OASA. The plan has a time horizon of 20 years. The strategic transport plan will include proposals of operational measures and infrastructure as well as smart technology innovation projects.
• As far as the urban transport’s infrastructure is concerned, three new metro stations in the municipality of Piraeus have started operation in 2023, upgrading the existing metro services of Line 3. This results in an extended transport cohesion and connectivity from the prime harbor of Athens to other destinations including the airport.
• In parallel to the construction works on Metro Line 3, a new metro line (Line 4) is currently under construction. Construction of the line started in the latter half of 2021 and is scheduled to be completed in 2029 or 2030. The future metro line will connect densely populated areas of central Athens. Initially the length of the line will be 11.9 km and there will be 15 metro stations.
• Furthermore, OASA S.A along with its two subsidiaries and the Greek Government are promoting the reinforcement, renovation and renewal of their fleet. More particularly, 14 trains of Metro Line 1 are being fully refurbished in order to extend their lifetime for another 15 to 20 years. A fleet of 140 new electric buses has already been delivered and 300 CNG buses will be added to the existing fleet at the end of 2024. The fleet renewal will upgrade the level of public transportation services offered to citizens and will support the promotion of sustainable urban mobility.
• Through a tender procedure, OASA has assigned the operation of 63 peripheral bus lines to a consortium. As a result, 211 more city buses as well as 550 more drivers will be in service on a daily basis. Added to the latter initiative, another 300 new environmentally friendly bus vehicles will be added to OSY’s fleet through leasing, in 2025.
• OASA is also promoting the digital transformation of the OASA Group to further enhance the provided customer services, such as:
  • EMV contactless solutions (Use of bank cards / mobile devices as purchase / validation means of Automatic Fare Collection System
  • Chatbot: Creation of a Virtual Assistant platform to serve citizens.
  • Digitized Student Card (providing access to OASA’s transport network)
• OASA has extensive experience in the area of sustainable urban mobility through its participation in a plethora of international research projects over the years. Currently OASA is participating in 6 European research projects.