Agios Dimitrios is situated 5 km south of the centre of Athens and 4 km away from the Saronic Gulf coast and it is amongst the 35 largest municipalities in Greece. It receives heavy daily traffic, as it provides a link connecting the southern suburbs of Athens to the centre through Vouliagmenis Avenue, while also having Agiou Dimitriou Avenue cut across the municipality. Another notable fact on traffic is that Agios Dimitrios gets a lot of through traffic in all directions. Its street planning particularities, combined with the division caused by the stream, have created isolated and quiet neighbourhoods in the centre of the city. Agios Dimitrios is mainly served by three metro stations, located close to the municipality’s borders. Moreover, the area around the metro stations accommodates additional transport flows, having a shopping mall situated above the Agios Dimitrios–Alexandros Panagoulis metro station and an urban bus terminal above the Dafni metro station. As a result, Agios Dimitrios essentially constitutes a transport hub for both the southern part of metropolitan Athens, as well as the latter’s centre, a fact that poses challenges to parking management. It is also served by several buses (both public and municipal), covering a large part of the municipality’s area. The two municipal transport lines are free to the public, thus enabling the mobility of vulnerable groups of citizens.
At the same time, the area boasts an extensive pedestrian network, as well as a low-speed network that facilitates the access of pedestrians and bikers to the centre of the city and to a number of public buildings (town hall, schools, churches, etc.). No bike lanes have been constructed so far, but a relative study was recently initiated by the Technical Services Department of the Municipality. In recent years, the Municipality has put its focus on the regeneration of the road network and public space. It is worth mentioning that a Traffic Park has been operating during the last 15 years, training children to use bike lanes and pavements.
Sustainability:
In 2017, the Municipality of Agios Dimitrios became the first Greek Municipality to publish a Sustainability Report for the year 2016, presenting the city’s sustainable development strategy and initiatives. The report was made according to the G4 Guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and included the ten principles of the United Nations Global Compact. In addition, the Municipality of Agios Dimitrios decided to take action towards the promotion of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, by including initiatives and actions aiming to increase awareness by informing the citizens.
In recent years, the municipality has been taking part in several activities and campaigns, such as the European Mobility Week (promoting the participation of the city’s schools), the national campaigns of Ecomobility and Freemobility, while, in the framework of its first SUMP elaboration, it participates in the CIVITAS SUMPs-Up SUMP Learning Programme (SLP3).
