"Save Sofia": Buses should carry Sofia residents, not become a means of draining municipal resources

„Scandal after scandal, failed procedure after failed procedure, contract after contract to the detriment of the public interest - this is the balance sheet of the management of the Sofia Autotransport in recent years”, the municipal councilors from "Save Sofia" stated at a briefing before the meeting of the Sofia Municipal Council.
„The interim management that the economic majority chose did not bring stability, transparency and efficiency to the management of the company, nor did it combat the chronic shortage of drivers, poor maintenance of buses and financial risks pushing the company towards bankruptcy. We can argue that this was also the assignment - to bring the Sofia Autotransport to bankruptcy”, summed up the situation Boris Bonev - chairman of "Save Sofia".
The party states that this model has been exhausted. „We insist not only on changing the management, but also on carrying out a complete revision of its management. That is why we submitted a report together with our colleagues from the PPDB and "Blue Sofia", which replaces the management appointed as “temporary” with the votes of GERB, BSP, the breakaway parties from Vazrazhdane and VMRO”, added Andrey Zografski - deputy chairman of the transport commission. According to him, the decision of the management to purchase second-hand buses at many times inflated prices shows that this management serves other, but not public interests. “Despite public signals and the facts presented, the contracts were signed. The damage was done. And there is no responsibility”, he said.
”The buses should carry Sofia residents, and not become a means of draining municipal resources. When you pay new prices for old machines, this is not a mistake – this is a model”, said Boris Bonev.
He recalled that corruption scandals in the company are far from new and linked this to the fact that the management was elected by GERB. Bonev pointed to the scandal with the driver's dormitory in Druzhba, for the renovation of which an engineering contract worth 2.945 million leva was signed in May 2020 without secured financing. The deadline for implementation was 165 days, but after 2,100 days it is still not ready. In 2024, the same scandalous order was the reason for the company's accounts to be frozen due to the debts accumulated under this contract.
„The analysis of the construction documentation shows double inflated prices. This is not just managerial negligence, but a systemic flaw that exposes the company to financial risk and undermines the trust of citizens,” explained Zografski.
He listed other dubious orders of the Sofia Autotransport - an order for the accommodation of 175 employees from third parties, terminated due to significant flaws in the documentation, and the order for a gas compressor, for which only one participant appeared, offering a price 400,000 leva above the maximum allowed by the Municipal Council.
„While the management experiments with poor-quality procedures, the shortage of drivers deepens and buses do not go on the lines. „The failure here is not administrative - it is managerial. The cases are different, the model is identical: weak contracts, minimal guarantees, low penalties, procedures with flaws and lack of protection for the municipal interest. And behind every scheme stands the economic majority, which elected this management with the help of Carlos Contrera”, concluded Zografski.
Boris Bonev stated that it is time for a full independent financial and procedural audit, publicity of all contracts, annexes and payments and “finally” to hold a competition for a new management with a clear mission – stabilizing the company, ending dubious practices and restoring trust.
According to "Save Sofia", the city cannot afford a transport operator that generates scandals instead of security. “If this corrupt route is not interrupted now, the citizens will continue to pay the price – with fewer buses, worse service and ever greater financial damages. It is time for the management to get off the bus”, concluded "Save Sofia".