Bulgaria: Children under 10 to travel free on public, intercity transport
From February 1 until the end of 2023, all children under the age of 10 will travel for free on city and intercity transport, while the discount for school pupils will increase from 20 per cent to 40 per cent, Bulgaria’s caretaker Transport Minister Hristo Alexiev said on January 25.
Speaking after a meeting of the caretaker government, Alexiev said that the discount for pensioners also was being increased, from 20 per cent to 40 per cent.
The budget of this measure is 73 million leva, which was coming mainly from tax on excess profits collected by the state from the oil refinery in Bourgas, he said.
The government also adopted changes that increase the subsidies for intercity lines by 27 million leva.
More funding will go to the unprofitable lines so that they can continue to exist and people in smaller towns have access to transport, Alexiev said.
He said that this measure would also lead to greater use of public transport and will reduce car trips and, accordingly, reduce pollution throughout the country.
Alexiev said that the state was “working on” on a measure for compensation for fuel prices and he expected that this would be announced in February.
(Photo: Sofia municipality)
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