Athens

Streets in the center of Athens will be gradually closed off to traffic on Thursday as a protest march against the establishment of private universities got underway.

The ministries of Environment and Culture presented restoration studies on Tuesday for the 3.4-hectare palace garden and cemetery, as well as the progress of the redevelopment of the entire former royal estate of Tatoi, north of Athens. 

Athens taxi drivers have announced mobilizations following the decision by the Attica Taxi Drivers Union to hold a 48-hour strike on February 27 and 28. The decision was made during an emergency meeting of the Administrative Council on Wednesday. 

The Athens International Airport shares made a spectacular debut on the Athens Stock Exchange on Wednesday, with its price rising by 14.02% in midday transactions amidst heavy trading, exceeding 50 million euros.

The Ministry of Infrastructure has left open the possibility of building side tolls at Varibobi and Agios Stefanos on the Athens-Lamia national road, as well as frontal tolls at the exit to Halkida, but only if "hybrid" (i.e. pay-by-the-mile) tolls are created.

The famous Dutch maestro and violinist who stirs up the crowds with his temperament, is coming to Athens for the first time for two performances at the OAKA Indoor Stadium.

A traffic policeman who became an Athenian icon for the cool and efficient manner with which he saw motorists in the capital's northern suburbs through some of the most nightmarish traffic snarls of the late 1980s and through the 1990s has died, according to a social media post on Tuesday.

The Culture Ministry has completed its acquisition from the National Bank of an iconic cultural venue at a former industrial complex on Pireos Street near central Athens, in a 12.6-million-euro deal bankrolled through the Recovery Fund. 

The ministry has hailed the initiative as a "vital" part of plans to gentrify the capital's Elainos district and "elevate it into a cultural hub." 

After the first concert arranged for April 20 sold out, Jameson Connects has booked the Essex band Nothing but Thieves for a second date on April 19 at the Old OSY Depot (Pireos & Ermou). The rising stars of the British music scene are making their Athens debut at the peak of their career. Their recent album "Dead Club City," released this past summer, soared to No 1 on the UK charts.

The average temperatures in January were higher compared to the previous decade, 2010-2019, the National Observatory of Athens, which operates 53 weather stations around the country, reported on Thursday.

Western Macedonia recorded the largest deviations from the norm by up to 3 degrees Celsius on average compared to recent seasonal data.