Over BGN 250 million from OP "Transport and Transport Infrastructure", which are for railway projects, have already been redirected to other modes of transport. We took this decision to avoid losing funds under the programme, which ends at the end of the year. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during an inspection of the construction of the railway line Elin Pelin - Kostenets. He added that due to administrative and legal impediments, major railway projects in the country have been seriously delayed, which is why the government has diverted funds to replacement projects.
"I have already taken measures to update the legislation to avoid the same problems in the new programming period," Gvozdeykov stressed. He explained that so far BGN 700 million from OP Transport and Transport Infrastructure 2014-2020 have been used for railway projects, and in the new operational programme the funds for railway infrastructure are BGN 1.42 billion. "The results so far show poor management of these large-scale investments by the state and it is very important that we change this," Minister Gvozdeykov said.
"Railway is one of the most environmentally friendly modes of transport that is undergoing serious development, including innovative development. We are working to catch up with the countries in Europe," Minister Gvozdeykov said. According to the transport minister, by 2027 the distance from Sofia to Plovdiv should be covered by train in less than 1 hour.
The railway section Elin Pelin - Kostenets is part of the project for modernization of the railway highway from Sofia to Burgas. The value of the entire project is 1.3 BGN billion and the funds are provided by OP Transport and Transport Infrastructure 2014-2020. Today Lot 3 between Ihtiman and Kostenets was inspected, where the work on digging one of the 579 m long tunnels has been completed. A total of 13 tunnels will be constructed on the Elin Pelin - Kostenets line, 8 of them are currently under active construction.
The inspection was attended by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Biser Minchev, the Director General of NC "Railway Infrastructure" Maria Genova, representatives of the contractors and supervision, media and others.
