The new management of the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE) is working toward reducing the four-hour train journey from Athens to Thessaloniki to three hours by 2021, in cooperation with the Transport Ministry.

Transport Minister Costas A. Karamanlis said that OSE and the ministry will not only improve signaling and expand maintenance works, but also plan to reroute the tracks at several points on the route.

The plans further include linking a number of ports, including that in Kavala, northern Greece, to the main rail network.

This article was originally published at ekathimerini.com.