The Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Peev said that he expects the “Road Infrastructure“ Agency to present to the ministry and carriers a corrected order on the introduction of restrictions on the movement of heavy goods vehicles today. This took place during a meeting with the management of the RIA and representatives of the industry organizations in road freight transport.
“We have noted that there are no specific rules for the introduction of temporary restrictions on the movement of trucks. This creates uncertainty in the sector and the impossibility of long-term planning. In addition, there are not enough suitable truck parking lots in Bulgaria with conditions for drivers. Stopping in the emergency lane is dangerous and unacceptable“, the minister pointed out. He stressed that drivers waiting in cabs at high temperatures poses serious risks to their health and reactions on the road.
„When introducing the restrictions so far, there is a lack of balance between the interests of citizens, the state and business. Momentary decisions are being made piecemeal. Each regional road management issues orders when it deems fit. This must change. It is necessary for experts and the industry to urgently develop unified procedures and criteria that will ensure predictability and timely information to Bulgarian and foreign carriers“, said Minister Peev.
He expressed a categorical position on the safety of driving heavy goods vehicles:
„It is unacceptable for technically defective, overloaded trucks or those with worn tires to be on the road. These are potential killers and business must pay serious attention to these shortcomings. Violation of overtaking bans by heavy goods vehicles also leads to dangerous situations and creates the conditions for serious accidents.“
The industry expressed full support for the increased control. According to them, international carriers rarely allow technically defective vehicles and those with worn tires, with the problems mainly occurring in domestic transport. They expressed their readiness to assist the state in eliminating companies in the grey sector and the so-called “letter boxes“, which threaten safety and distort competition.