The "Road Infrastructure" Agency /API/ is also partially to blame for the tragic accident on the "Struma" motorway, in which 45 people from the Republic of North Macedonia died. This is stated in the decision of the District Court in Pernik.
The accident on the "Struma" motorway occurred at around 02:00 on November 23, 2021, at the 31st kilometer, near the village of Bosnek. The tourist bus, in which 52 people were traveling, crashed into the guardrail, caught fire and burned completely.
According to the court, the RIA is responsible for 10% of the damages incurred and should be sentenced to pay each of the plaintiffs 20,000 leva in compensation for non-pecuniary damage. The circumstances are also recognized that for the section where the accident occurred - Act 16 for the motorway was not issued and therefore it has the status of an expressway. The section was opened for traffic in 2007 at the Act 15 stage, the decision of the District Court says.
It also states that the driver drove the bus at 106 kilometers per hour at the maximum permitted speed in the section of 120 kilometers. The geometric characteristics were not observed when designing the expressway. "The designed transverse slope of the curve corresponds to a speed of 90 kilometers per hour, but there is no road sign B26/90 kilometers placed in the necessary places to limit the speed", the Pernik court decision also states.