Public Relations and Protocol

This year Bulgaria will be the chair of the Regional Advisory Committee for Civil Aviation Search and Rescue (RASARAC). DG Civil Aviation Administration today took over the rotating chairmanship of the Committee from the Civil Aviation Agency of the Republic of North Macedonia.

The Presidency will organise and hold meetings of the Management Board and expert working groups to address issues related to cross-border cooperation, operational procedures and agreements, training and preparation, and search and rescue oversight.

Thanks to the support of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Sofia, the project was implemented in less than 3 months.

The first hospital heliport in Sofia is now registered according to HEMS requirements. It is located at UMBAL Sveta Anna and will be incorporated into the air ambulance system. This was announced by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during the handing over of the airport registration documents to the Executive Director of the medical institution Dr. Slavcho Bliznakov.

With the positioning of the helicopter here, it will cover a wide perimeter in Eastern and Central Bulgaria, as well as part of the Trakia highway

By the end of the year, we will prepare for operation the third temporary operating base for the air emergency. This was said by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov, who together with the Mayor of Sliven Stefan Radev visited Burshen Airport today. The third temporary and later one of the six permanent HEMS bases will be located there.

Safe driving training should become part of driver training. We are starting studies to implement them in the training program. This was said by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov at a meeting with parents of children killed in road accidents and representatives of the initiative comittee ‘Together against the madness on the roads’.

Bulgaria and Japan will cooperate in the field of transport security and high-tech development. This was discussed at a meeting of the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeikov with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Bulgaria H.E. Hisashi Michigami.

Prime Minister Academic Nikolay Denkov, in the presence of the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov, handed over the certificates of airworthiness (brevets) to the first pilots who will perform emergency medical assistance operations by air — HEMS. The six pilots, who will operate the first two helicopters, have undergone theoretical and practical training and passed their exams.

Children up to 14 years will travel free on public transport. The measure shall enter into force on 1 February 2024. This is what Transport and Communications Minister Georgi Gvozdeykov said at a briefing at the Council of Ministers today, after the government adopted changes to the legislation regulating subsidies and compensation in public transport.

Purchase of 80 new vehicles and 10 new laboratories for the inspectors of the Exectuve Agency Road Transport Administration, equalisation and increase of salaries, as well as new clothing for all employees. These are some of the measures included in the proposed budget of the Ministry of Transport and Communications for next year.

It was discussed today during a meeting between the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov, Deputy Minister Dimitar Nedyalkov, the leadership of the EARTA and representatives of the trade unions of the KT ‘Podkrepa’ in the Agency.

The Exectuve Agency Road Transport Administration is stepping up its control of unauthorized passenger and cargo transport during the Christmas and New Year holidays. Together with the Ministry of the Interior and the NRA, inspections have been launched in different regions of the country and at border crossings.

From the very first days of its mandate, the Bulgarian government put road safety among the important priorities of its work. This is what Transport and Communications Minister Georgi Gvozdeykov said in Brussels during today's meeting of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council of the European Union.

The control vehicles of the executive agency Road Transport Administration are now equipped with POS terminals. They are linked to the Agency's electronic control system where the penalty notices are generated.

The POS terminals enable the payment of the penalty notices by offenders who are foreign citizens without a permanent address on the territory of Bulgaria, as well as Bulgarian citizens.

By the end of 2025, 80% of the country's population will have access to 5G connectivity

New requirements for roadworthiness tests which will significantly increase controls are now in force. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov at the opening of a round table ‘Challenges to Sustainable Mobility. Unlocking Bulgaria's Potential’, organized by the Association of Car Manufacturers.

From the beginning of 2027, the residents of four more districts will have a convenient and fast connection to the metro, and the construction of this section will relieve traffic in one of the busiest directions in Sofia. This was announced by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov at the launch of the project for the extension of the third line of the Sofia metro.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications, with the support of the JASPERS initiative, has started activities related to the update of the national transport model and the preparation of a methodology for project prioritisation. This became clear during a meeting held today at the Ministry. Participants in the discussion of activities related to the update of the transport model included the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Biser Minchev, the Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Eng.

All the teams of National Railway Infrastructure Company are working in the field to remove the accidents on the railway network caused by heavy snowfall and strong wind.

The movement of trains in the country is carried out in conditions of complicated winter situation.

On the order of the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov from Friday in the National Railway Infrastructure Company an organization for action in complicated winter conditions was created, as all teams and equipment were mobilized.

The Varna ferry complex will become a key point for equipment and cargo to Ukraine in its reconstruction process. This was stated by Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during a visit to the complex today.

We are actively working to improve transport connectivity between Bulgaria and Romania by building new bridges over the Danube, restoring ferry links and ensuring efficient shipping. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Dimitar Nedyalkov during a Bulgarian-Romanian conference "United Europe — a path to economic security and sustainable integration", held yesterday in Ruse.

I look forward to making the necessary efforts to complete by the end of the year the activities under OP Transport and Transport Infrastructure (OPTTI) 2014-2020. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova at the opening of the third meeting of the Monitoring Committee of the Transport Connectivity Programme (TCP) 2021-2027 in Plovdiv.