Public Relations and Protocol

Candidate drivers will sit theory and practice tests no more than four times in six months, after which they will undergo further training. These are some of the measures that Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov presented during a discussion on road safety, which took place today at the National Press Club of the BTA in Sofia. The forum is part of the campaign ‘Drive smart — get alive!’ of the media platform ‘24 hours’.

The deepening of the port of Burgas will open the doors to receive some of the largest ships and increase its capacity and attractiveness. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova during the presentation of the activities of the project for capital dredging between the port terminals in Burgas.

Actions have been taken to alleviate the heavy traffic through Danube Bridge 2. At the moment there are no trucks waiting on the route of the republican road network to the BCP Vidin-Calafat. All counters at the border crossing are fully operational. The time for checking trucks has been reduced as much as possible so that it does not violate the rules for the protection of national security and border control.

The Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov and the Minister of Transport of Kazakhstan Marat Karabaev held an online meeting to discuss the development of transport links between the two countries. Deputy Ministers of Transport and Communications Anna Natova and Dimitar Nedyalkov also took part in the meeting.

Carrying out joint checks using the method of comprehensive roadside checks is one of the most effective ways of preventing drivers from carrying passengers and goods. This was stated by Borislav Muerov, the Executive Director of the Automobile Administration Agency, during today’s action, which is taking place in the area of the road junction ‘Zherkovo’ on Hemus Motorway. He pointed out that this approach is applied in many EU countries and has a positive effect on road safety.

Experts from the National Railway Infrastructure Company (NKZI) and trade unions have started work on finalising the texts of the Collective Labour Agreement for workers in the state enterprise. It is expected to be signed next week once all the parameters have been agreed by both sides. This became clear after a meeting of the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov with the Board of Directors of the National Railway Company and representatives of the trade unions.

The helicopter will reach the Zheleznitsa tunnel from Sofia in 30 minutes

The Civil Aviation Authority has registered the eighth heliport for the country's air ambulance service. It is located next to the Zheleznitsa tunnel of Struma Motorway.

The criteria for the procedure for the construction of charging stations for cars and trucks on the TEN-T network are ready. This was stated in Burgas by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov at a meeting of the Monitoring Committee of the Transport Connectivity Programme. Methodology and criteria for the procedure, which is planned to be announced in November 2024, are to be approved during the meeting.

Since Bulgaria's accession to the European Union, 373 km of railway lines have been modernised, as well as 8 key railway stations in the country. This was said by Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova during a meeting with Serbian media representatives, which took place today in the building of the Ministry of Transport and Communications. She pointed out that the benefits of Bulgaria's accession to the EU are indisputable and visible for all citizens and businesses.

Within the day, a plan for the reorganisation of the movement of trains travelling through Sofia and Sofia-North stations should be made. This was ordered by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during a meeting today with BDZ and NKZI in connection with the long delays of trains in Sofia in recent days.

We are already seeing hydrogen technology entering real life. I hope that charging stations for hydrogen cars will soon be built in Bulgaria. This was said by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Dimitar Nedyalkov during the opening of the first hydrogen charging station in Bulgaria and the region.

The new duty-free zone is built according to the most modern European and world standards. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova during the official opening of the largest commercial zone at Sofia Airport, Terminal 2.

Transport and infrastructure are most important for Ukraine, both in the war, which is now in its third year, and for the country's post-conflict reconstruction. This was the general opinion at the meeting of the Deputy Ministers of Transport and Communications Anna Natova and Dimitar Nedyalkov with the President of the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Gennady Chizhikov.

Building 5G coverage on the highways connecting Bulgaria and Greece is important both for mobility and for improving digital services for the small municipalities along this corridor. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Dimitar Nedyalkov at the demonstration of the first phase of the cross-border 5G SEAGUL project.

The construction of an open-air car park at Sofia Airport Terminal 2, which will provide 1000 new parking spaces, has started. This was stated by Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova during the start of the construction works. She pointed out that once this project is completed, the long-awaited overhaul of the covered parking lot will begin.

We are completely renewing the fleet of the Executive Agency"Automobile Administration"with 80 new control vehicles. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during a visit to the headquarters of the supplier and representative of the manufacturer, where the first equipped vehicle was presented to him. All the cars have now been delivered and their outfitting has begun. The contractor assured the minister that the vehicles will be fully completed by August this year when they will be ready for use.

Given the specificity and complexity of the rail rolling stock modernisation project, MTC is moving to a direct contracting process for the procurement of 35 single-deck multiple unit trains funded by the National Recovery and Sustainability Plan.

Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova participated in the opening of the seventh and first new state-owned hospital heliport outside Sofia. It is located in the "Dr. Stefan Cherkezov" Hospital in Veliko Tarnovo. As part of the ceremony, the first medical helicopter made a demonstration landing at the newly constructed facility.

The internal inspection for clarification of the actions of the employees of the Motor Vehicle Administration - Plovdiv during the inspection of a specialized vehicle for forced relocation, owned by the OP "Parking and Repatriation" to the Municipality of Plovdiv, was completed. The Commission has found that the employees of the regional department who participated in the inspection on 04.04.2024 have violated the internal rules of work of the Executive Agency "Automobile Administration".