The old road to Paphos Airport will be modernized. First, lighting.

The old road to Paphos Airport via Timi is finally to be modernised. After resolving its legal status, preparations for infrastructure improvements have begun. The first concrete step will be to illuminate the section leading from the Anarita roundabout to the airport entrance.

The history of this route, however, is unique. The road has been in use for decades, even though parts of its route remained unregulated in state records for years. It wasn't until 2025 that procedures began to be finalized to allow it to be treated as a regular public road.

Old Paphos Airport Road Finally Gets Formal Status

This concerns the existing access to the airport leading through the surrounding area Achaelia and Timi.

The route has been in operation for many years, and is used by both residents and those traveling to the airport. The problem is that its formal status has long been inconsistent with its actual use.

In 2025, local authorities reported that there were still approximately 3-kilometer sectionThe Department of Geodesy and Cadastre was supposed to finalize the procedure by the end of the year. The latest information indicates that the road has already been officially registered as public.

This is important because sorting out its status has opened the way to preparing more serious investments.

First, the lights from the Anarita roundabout to the airport

The most specific project currently concerns road lighting.

The Department of Public Works has started preparing a project covering the section from Anarita roundabout to the entrance to Paphos Airport.

According to the previous schedule, field work is scheduled to begin in the last quarter of 2026.

This doesn't mean that heavy equipment will be deployed immediately along the entire route. Design and preparatory work is currently underway, and the actual lighting installation is planned for later this year.

It's not just about lighting

In parallel, preparations are underway regulatory plan for further modernization of the road.

The Department of Spatial Planning has previously begun analyzing its future cross-section and parameters. The goal is to gradually adapt the old access road to current traffic volumes.

DIKO MP from Paphos Chrysanthos Savvidis told Philenews that the current infrastructure dates back to a completely different era and no longer meets the growing needs of the region.

The problem is becoming increasingly apparent as traffic at Paphos Airport increases.

The airport is growing, and the road remains from another era

Paphos Airport is currently undergoing expansion. Planned investments include increasing terminal capacity by approximately 30%.

Meanwhile, some of the road infrastructure leading to the airport has been unable to keep up with this development for years.

Calls for improvements to the Timi-Achaelia road have been underway for several years. Among the problems cited were the lack of adequate lighting and pedestrian infrastructure.

The topic did not suddenly emerge in 2026. Current actions are the result of a problem that local authorities and parliamentarians have been reporting for a long time.

Five MPs from Paphos want work to be accelerated

The matter is also being dealt with by the Parliamentary Committee on Transport, Communications and Public Works.

Representatives of the commission have already visited the route, and according to Philenews all five MPs representing the Paphos district is currently engaged in activities aimed at improving the situation.

Savvidis announces further pressure on the relevant institutions to ensure that the modernization of the road proceeds in parallel with the development of the airport itself.

Investments worth 30 million euros are planned in Achaelia and Timi

The modernization of infrastructure in this area has a broader dimension.

President Nikos Christodoulides announced earlier modernization of two sections of the road network in Achaelia and Timi with a total value of approximately EUR 30 million.

According to the government, the investments are intended to improve security and transport links in the eastern part of the Paphos region.

However, this entire amount shouldn't be attributed solely to lighting the old airport road. It's a broader road investment program encompassing the areas around Achaelia and Timi.

This is not a new road from Paphos to the airport

It is also worth distinguishing between two projects that can be easily confused.

The modernisation of the old road through Timi is not the same project as the construction of a new road link between the tourist areas of Paphos and Geroskipou and the airport.

For years, the new route has been a separate, much larger undertaking. Its implementation has encountered repeated challenges and delays.

The government continues to declare its willingness to complete it, indicating that it will serve both the international airport and the needs of a nearby military base.

That's why improving the existing access road is crucial now. Even if a new connection is built in the future, the existing road still serves residents and a significant portion of traffic in this part of the region.

After years, finally a concrete schedule

The next change that drivers should actually notice will be the lighting from the Anarita roundabout to the airport.

If the previous schedule is maintained, Works should begin in the last quarter of 2026.

Later, the road is to be gradually modernized according to a plan currently being prepared.

After decades of use on the route, parts of which even required formal registration clean-up not long ago, this will be a significant change for one of the most important access routes to Paphos Airport.

Source: Philenews / Δήμος Ιεροκηπίας / Presidency of the Republic of Cyprus