Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communications

We rely on the awareness of the citizens living in this area to use the pedestrian underpass as they should and not cross the railway line illegally, said the Minister of Transport, Information Technology and Communications Ivaylo Moskovski during the inspection of the nearly completed site. Crossing the railroad at places which are not specified is extremely dangerous, he added.

Health and lives of the people comes first and that is why NRIC started the construction of a pedestrian underpass, commented Minister Moskovski.

The financing of the project "Construction of a pedestrian underpass at km 9 + 218 at the station Zaharna Fabrika - Gorna Banya along the fifth railway line Sofia - Kulata" is allocated entirely from the budget of the state company. The funds provided for its implementation amount to 1.913 million lev.

Constructing a pedestrian underpass, NRIC provides safe, secure and regulated crossing of the railway line. Pedestrians from the neighborhoods "Gevgeliyski" - "Zapaden Park" - "Ovcha Kupel" and "Gorna Banya" shall use the underpass, as this will minimize the possibility of incidents in the area of the station. Access to the underpass is provided by two staircases, two ramps and lifts for people with reduced mobility.

The construction site was opened in the middle of July this year and the construction activities are to be completed by the end of October.

Before the construction started, the railway infrastructure manager carried out an inspection and the results showed that in that section of the Fifth main railway line (Sofia - Kulata) with a length of 450 m there were some illegal pedestrian crossings at about every 75 meters. They are a result of pedestrians crossing the lines at these areas, all of which have been illegally carried out.

Representatives of the management of NRIC commented that good cooperation with municipal authorities – at regional and central level, as well as the issuance of the building permit in due time contributed to the rapid implementation of the facility. Stanislav Ivanov - member of the 43rd National Assembly, and the Commission for Transport, Information Technologies and Communications was also present at today’s inspection.

We recall that the manner and location of the crossing of the railway infrastructure - through underpasses, overpasses or crossings, is determined in accordance with the requirements of the regulations. The regulations do not provide for the same level crossing of railroads such as line Sofia - Kulata and the above-mentioned section. Furthermore, the site is located on a curve and does not provide visibility when crossing at the same level.