Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis rode the first fully rebuilt train on Athens' oldest metro line on and acknowledged the line is currently in a "very problematic" condition because of extremely old rolling stock, promising 14 renovated trains within a year.
"I don't think there's any point in prettifying things," Mr. Mitsotakis said after riding from Thiseio to Moschato with Deputy Transport Minister Giorgos Kotsiras and Thanasis Kottaras, chief executive of the operator STASY.
He chatted with passengers and tourists.
The renovated trains will be "accessible, air-conditioned, clean, with special spaces for people with disabilities," he said, adding that the goal is also shorter waits between trains.
Line 1, known as the Ilektrikos, runs from Piraeus to Kifisia.
The 14 trains date from 1983 to 1985 and have outlived their expected 30-year life. The Spanish firm CAF is rebuilding them in Volos.
The first entered service last week, about 22 months late, and CAF has been fined €3.5 million for delays. The rest are due by May 2027, the first new rolling stock on the line in 22 years.
The rebuilt cars have new motors, air conditioning, LED lighting, seats, floors, windows, information screens and a CCTV system, and improved wheelchair access.
They are meant to last another 25 years and let headways fall to about five minutes. Older orange trains on the line will again run without air conditioning this year.
Mr. Mitsotakis tied the project to the capital's traffic problem.
"We cannot talk about tackling congestion without real support for public transport," he said, citing new buses already added to the network.
Mr. Kotsiras said the remaining 13 trains will follow, and that waiting times on all three metro lines are already falling.