Once again, we are witnessing the absurd reality on Bulgarian roads, where state institutions and responsible authorities demonstrate total irresponsibility and negligence. The chronic problem with poor-quality road infrastructure in Bulgaria continues to deepen, and taxpayers are forced to pay double - once for shoddy repairs and a second time for expensive repairs to their broken cars. This time, the focus falls on road III-306 to Oryahovo, in the section to the village of Selanovtsi, which reflects in miniature the entire vicious system of road construction in our country.
A few days ago, experts from the European Center for Transport Policies (EUCTP) published a shocking video investigation, which for another year exposed the same painful problems. For more than two months, this key road section was left completely milled, unsecured and literally abandoned, turning into a real testing ground for the nerves of drivers and the suspension of passing cars. The situation is a classic example of how the state abdicates its obligations to guarantee the road safety of its citizens.
After public pressure and inspections by the independent organization, some movement was finally noticed on the route, but the end result is scandalous to say the least
Instead of quality execution, the laying of the first layer of asphalt, known as binder, began, the newly built road immediately showed huge defects, and immediately after the repair was completed. From the footage (see the video at the end of the article) it is clearly visible that the mixture crumbles at the slightest touch, there is no compaction whatsoever, and the new asphalt is extremely thin and can be literally torn off with bare hands.
In the video, EUCTP representatives clearly demonstrate how the so-called “new” asphalt crumbles into dust under the feet of the inspectors, resembling loose soil rather than a durable road surface. Experts rightly ask where the millions of leva of taxpayers are going, after once again materials of catastrophic quality are being used that will not last even until the first rains. It is obvious that the technological requirements have been brutally ignored, and the control by the contracting authority, the “Road Infrastructure” Agency is completely fictitious.
This absurdity around Oryahovo and Selanovtsi is not an isolated case at all
It is rather another proof of the lasting trend of simulated construction in Bulgaria. The same scheme is applied everywhere in the country - huge budgets are allocated for rehabilitation, deadlines are extended indefinitely, and in the end the roads are handed over in a condition that requires new repairs the next season. Institutions prefer to turn a blind eye to obvious violations, instead of imposing serious sanctions on the contractor companies that continue to save on expensive materials at the expense of human lives.
It is high time that responsible persons in ministries and departments stop hiding behind bureaucratic justifications and take real responsibility for this road genocide. Such inaction not only damages the state budget, but also daily endangers the safety of thousands of drivers who are forced to maneuver between potholes, milled traps, and crumbling asphalt. Uncompromising control and real penalties for construction defects are the only way to stop this vicious practice, in which the asphalt does not stand firmly under the tires of our cars at all.