Roads Rage and Relics

The newly constructed national highway is Greece's main artery connecting the north to the south, it is the lifeblood to countless towns, villages and cities. Sprinkled quaintly on side of the national road are miniature churches, whose cuteness overshadows an often darker story. These relics and offerings by relatives of car-crash victims, are a constant reminder of how dangerous Greek driving and roads really are.

The poor signage on the roads accompanied by poor maintenance and reckless machismo driving leads thousands of people to an early grave every year, while infrastructure for the treatment of victims of road accidents is minimal and insufficient. Unfortunately the number of accidents has been rising steadily as the number of young people are on the road increases.

The roads' poor condition, high number of casualties and expensive tolls have given rise to the "I refuse to pay!" movement, where citizens block tollbooths and encourage other motorists and commuters to avoid paying the highway tolls. Their argument is that the greek citizens have already been taxed for them, turning the country's highways into red zones, and civil rights combat fields.