All public investments in transport and in information technology and communications system are guaranteed for this year. This was stated by the Minister of Transport, Information Technology and Communications Rossen Jeliazkov during a webinar held today with members of the American Chamber of Commerce, on "Transport and digitalization - a plan to overcome the COVID-19 crisis in Bulgaria."
"The Bulgarian transport sector is fully prepared to take over the transport of passengers and goods, but the important question is whether the business will be able to restore its production volumes as of 2019. We have opportunities for the development of alternative transport, such as intermodal. In one month, this type of transportation almost doubled its capacity in Bulgaria, which was not expected as a trend. This motivated us to open another terminal and today we discussed the possibility of launching a concession procedure for the intermodal terminal in Dragoman", said Rossen Jeliazkov. He added that in the general context of the Green Deal he expected to have investment interest in the procedure.
Regarding the concession procedure for Sofia Airport, Minister Rossen Jeliazkov said that regarding the situation with the development of COVID-19, an inquiry was made to the candidates whether they would continue their participation in the procedure. Out of the five participants, four confirmed and one officially stated that he was giving up. "This is very encouraging and we expect to have good news for the sector after the court proceedings", the Minister said. He identified the aviation sector as one of the worst affected by the situation, mainly due to reduced traffic. "We are in constant contact with the operators and are looking for system solutions to preserve the sector", added Rossen Jeliazkov.
With regard to the Mobility Package I, the Minister noted that Bulgaria, together with its partners from like-minded countries, continued to insist on changes to the proposed texts, especially the return of trucks and drivers. "We have stated our position that we are going to court. We have 18 months in which the transitional period operates and within this period we will seek the intervention of the court in Luxembourg", Jeliazkov stated firmly.
