The electric railway that connects Athens to its neighboring port municipality of Piraeus is celebrating its 144th anniversary this year, marking the date on Feb. 27, 1869 when it opened.
The line was the first light rail mean of transportation in Greece. The Athens-Piraeus Electric Railways or ISAP, is the oldest urban rapid transit system of Athens metropolitan area in Greece.
It opened as a suburban railway line connecting Athens with Piraeus, and was gradually converted to full rapid transit operations, making it one of the oldest metro lines in the world. The current line evolved from the older Athens & Piraeus Railway and Lavrion Square-Strofyli railway.
Before ISAP opened, wagons were the only means of transportation to link Athens with Piraeus. The Greek railway system was one of the first urban railways in the world, as in London, famous for the oldest subway system, had opened just six years earlier. Passengers on the first route of the railway were eminent personalities such as Queen Olga, the Prime Minister of Greece, Alexander Zaimis, several ministers, military officers and diplomats.
The six-wagon engine covered an 8.5-kilometer (5.28 mile) route from Thissio to Piraeus within 19 minutes. In 1874 the Athens & Piraeus Railway Company was bought by the Bank of Industrial Credit. Under the new ownership the railway procured additional rolling stock. Soon the line was extended to Omonoia Square with an underground section constructed with the cut-and-cover method.
The line was electrified in 1904 using the 600V DC, third rail, top contact system by Thomson Houston. In its long history, the Greek railway saw glory and disaster, such as the first Olympic Games in Athens 1896 and their return in 2004. It also it transfered soldiers of the 1912-1913 war, was bombed and survived to serve untold millions of passengers.
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