According to 2002 statistics, the road network in the Republic of Cyprus-administered areas of Cyprus consists of about 7,206km of paved and 4,387km of unpaved roads. Although the first motorway in Cyprus, A1, was completed as recently as October 1985, the country already has the most motorway km per capita (36.8km /100,000 inhabitants) among all European Union members.[1]
There are no toll paying roads in Cyprus to date.
Maintenance
The Department of Public Works of the Ministry of Transportation, Communications and Works is generally responsible for the maintenance, improvement and construction of the road network; while the municipalities are responsible for those secondary and intercity roads in their jurisdiction in more granular ways; with the District Administration Authorities taking the responsibilities of what would be municipal governments in areas which are not in municipalities (rural areas). The Forestry Department is separately responsible for most unpaved roads in forest areas, in order to accommodate the administration and protection of forests.
History
In the 1970s, the Cypriot Government introduced a series of schemes to improve the infrastructure of transport on the Island. The first planned motorway was to be built between Nicosia and Nicosia International Airport, roughly on the route of the current Griva Digeni Avenue. The road was widened in preparation, but following the Turkish Invasion of Cyprus in July 1974 and the closure of the airport as a result, this scheme was abandoned.
Also due to the Turkish Invasion, Limassol emerged as the main port of Cyprus, so the decision was made to build a motorway between Nicosia and Limassol
On July 2025, the European Investment Bank (EIB) was reported to provide funds of €100 million to allow for improvements to the general road network [2]
Sections B, D and E of the South Nicosia Orbital Road (A22)
Road network categories and numbering
Roads and Motorways in Cyprus can be classified into 6 main categories:
Motorways: 4 lanes, free of any at-grade intersections. They are the most important road network on the island, and the letter "A" is used for their official numbering. Motorways usually either run parallel to the B class roads of the same name (Like the A1) or are upgraded B roads (Like part of the A3) While there is no formal announcement about the numbering of new motorways under construction and under planning, it's anticipated that they will have the same number as the B road they will replace. So the Paphos - Polis Motorway will be coded A7 because A is the letter of Motorways and 7 because it will "replace" the B7 in terms of functionality.
Intercity Routes: usually 2 lanes, except sometimes to help with conjestion, can have roundabouts and traffic lights. They are labled as B routes, and all have 1 number. Most of them have been replaced for intercity transport with their same-number Motorway counterparts, but are often still important for urban transport
Main Avenues: important roads that are mostly within city limits that are labeled B routes due to either being seen as important or having had 2 lanes on both sides during classification
Secondary "E" Roads: when classified they had 2 lanes and were always paved. Their numbers contain 3 digits. The first digit is the serial number of the motorway or intercity road (main road) it branches off of either directly or as a sub-branch and the last two digits are a serial number of the road itself, with it getting larger the further away it is from the start of the main road
Secondary "F" Roads: when coded during the 80's 1 laned and often unpaved, today almost completely paved and often having lanes in both directions. They use "F" in the official coding system, and they are counted in the same way as "E"s are. There is no "E" with the same number as an "F".
Unclassified roads. Roads were constructed after the road network was numbered, so they will remain without a serial number until the next road numbering evaluation.
