Greek National Road 1

Greek National Road 1 (Greek: Εθνική Οδός 1, abbreviated as EO1) is the old single carriageway road connecting Athens with Thessaloniki and Evzonoi, the border crossing between Greece and North Macedonia. For most of its length, it has been replaced by the new A1 motorway.

National Road 1
Εθνική Οδός 1
Major junctions
South end	central Athens
North end	North Macedonia border at Evzonoi
Location
Country	Greece
Regions	Attica, Central Greece, Thessaly, Central Macedonia
Major cities	Athens, Lamia, Larissa, Katerini, Alexandreia, Polykastro
Highway system
Highways in Greece Motorways National Roads

Original route

Ministerial Decision G25871 of 9 July 1963 officially defined the EO1 as a major north-south route between Athens to the south and Evzonoi and the international border with the former Yugoslavia (now with North Macedonia) to the north: the decree specified that the EO1 would pass through Decelea, Sfendali, Martino, Atalanti, Kamena Vourla, Thermopylae, Lamia, Stylida, Almyros, Velestino, Larissa, Tempe, Katerini, Alexandreia, Chalkidona, Gefyra and Polykastro. The EO1 overlapped with the EO6 from Velestino to Larissa, and with the EO2 from Chalkidona to Gefyra.

Present route

Today, the A1 motorway has absorbed most of EO1's original alignment, although the EO1 continues to run alongside most of the A1 for non-motorway traffic. However, there is a motorway-only gap west of Lake Yliki, requiring non-motorway traffic to detour via Thebes and Aliartos on the EO3. Additionally, the border crossing itself, north of Evzoni, is only open to motorway traffic.

History

The EO1, as created by Ministerial Decision G25871 in 1963, was similar to the old EO1, which existed by royal decree from 1955 to 1963: however, the old EO1 followed the route of the current EO8 to Elefsina and then the EO3 up to Larissa, and the northernmost destination was Thessaloniki, instead of Polykastro and Evzonoi.

Until 1975, the EO1 formed part of the old European route E92 from Athens to Lamia and from Alexandreia to Gefyra, the old E87 from Velestino to Larissa, and the old E5 from Gefyra to Evzonoi.