Two more serious road accidents occurred at the "Hainboaz" pass (road II-55). In one, a heavy truck hits an oncoming passenger car. The driver of the car dies on the spot. The truck - runs away. In the second case, another truck driver loses control of the vehicle - probably due to excessive speed. The restraint system fails to hold it - either because it is of a low class, or because it is simply old and depreciated. And do you know since when? Since 2009.
And now I ask:
Where is the state?
Where is the “Road Infrastructure“ Agency and why does the “Hainboaz” passage still not have Act 16? Why hasn't a single guardrail been replaced for 16 years? Why are parts of the road still functioning with temporary traffic organization?
This is what Diana Rusinova from the European Center for Transport Policies says in her open letter to Bulgarian citizens. The letter was published on her Facebook page. Here is more from it:
Where is the Executive Agency “Automobile Administration“? Why does it work with “working hours”, while violations of heavy trucks occur at any time? Where is the control?
But let's not fool ourselves – the state is not the only one to blame.
Where is our personal responsibility?
Where are the manners, the culture, the respect for life? Do you even know the traffic rules? Do you follow them? Or are you just waiting for an opportunity to launch into comments – against anyone who dares to tell you that you are not blameless?
When I say that motorcyclists often break the rules and endanger all of us – you attack me.
When I say that cyclists and drivers of IEPS (electric scooters) create chaos – you criticize me.
When I ask for control and clarity – you accuse me of being extreme, unprofessional and unexpert, in short, that I don't understand anything.
But let's tell the truth:
When institutions are silent, when people are embittered and everyone lives in their own righteousness, the result is clear - more accidents, more death, more destruction.
And these same people who want "European roads", go to a protest of 50 people.
And then they leave this protest and commit dozens of traffic violations on the way home.
How then do we have the audacity to talk about change?
By what right do politicians talk about safety, when for five years there has been no real maintenance of the roads, no effective control, no punishment for the guilty drivers? Only talk. Only PR. Only Facebook heroes and inaction.
Even after Siyana's death - promises, oaths, measures. So far nothing - a big 0.
Bulgarians, the state is not something external.
The state is all of us.
And if we want to return it to the hands of the worthy, honest and responsible - we must state it clearly and categorically. Not with anger, but with actions. Not with words, but with perseverance.
20% of bought and corporate votes decide our fate for decades.
And we - supposedly smart, supposedly outraged - are silent, shrugging our shoulders and waiting for someone else to fix everything.
This is not the time for silence. This is not the time for passivity.
It is time to take this state back.
With conscience. With courage. With sacrifice, if necessary.