EU grants 293M euro from Cohesion Fund to upgrade Bulgaria’s Plovdiv – Bourgas railway connection
The European Union is investing more than 293 million euro from the Cohesion Fund in a more modern, faster and safer railway connection between the cities of Plovdiv and Bourgas, linking some of Bulgaria’s largest cities and one of the most important ports on the Black Sea, the European Commission said on November 15.
The investment is contributing to the completion of the high-speed railway line on the Orient/East Med corridor of the trans-European transport network (TEN-T), connecting Central and South-East Europe, the Commission said.
European Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Creţu said: “Thanks to this EU-funded project, Bulgarian people will enjoy shorter travel time and increased safety.
“Because this project promotes clean mobility in the country, they will also ultimately benefit from better air quality,” Creţu said.
The project will reduce travel time for both passenger and freight transport by 40 minutes, with trains reaching speeds between 130 and 160 km/h along the 293km stretch.
This will make train rides competitive with road transport, promoting a cleaner mobility in the country, the Commission said.
At the same time, a number of measures will improve safety on the line, thanks to new signalling and telecommunications systems and the replacement of the existing level crossings by 29 overpasses, a pedestrian bridge and an underpass.
(Photo of Bourgas Central Railway Station: Mihal Orela)
