Will there be an end to free parking for electric cars in Sofia, will official subscriptions be reduced and when will parking become more accessible?
The statistics of the Ministry of Interior indicate that out of 1,200,000 road vehicles, only 12,700 are electric — that is, about 1%.
„The problem with the organization of parking in the zones is that currently electric cars park absolutely free of charge and without time restrictions. This creates a problem in certain subzones. When there is no payment and no time restrictions, some of the users of these electric vehicles actually abuse it. We have witnessed how for weeks there are electric cars that do not move from their parking space, and in the ideal center there are not so many spaces that we can afford such an imbalance in the system”, Carlos Contrera, a municipal councilor from VMRO, told NOVA.
„My proposal is to introduce an annual vignette sticker for electric cars, valid from January 1, 2027. That is, there is a sufficient transition period, with the idea of not allowing entire streets to be blocked by electric cars”, Contrera said.
„The official subscription is one of the municipality's Achilles' heels. The moment the municipality decides to limit the official subscription, the institutions will create security zones. Therefore, the steps should be as follows: I am ready to propose a text next week that clearly describes how a security zone is created – with an order from the mayor of Sofia Municipality and with an approved organization of the movement”, said Contrera.