site.btaTransport Minister: Government Has Taken Action to Open New Railway Border Crossing with Turkiye

Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Policies and Minister of Transport and Communications Hristo Aleksiev said at Friday's parliamentary control that the government has taken action to open a new railway border crossing with Turkiye. 

Aleksiev said that traffic from Turkiye is increasing tremendously at the moment and that there is already a lack of infrastructure capacity at the land border between Bulgaria and Turkiye, both in terms of road and rail crossings. Until October 2022, about 45,000 trucks have additionally passed through, loaded onto rail transport, he added. 

He recalled that the issue was also discussed at his meeting on Thursday with Turkish State Railways Director General Hasan Pezuk. 

The new railway border crossing between the two countries, on the line Yambol - Lesovo - Turkish border, should meet the needs of the market and ease the traffic through the existing railway border crossing Svilengrad - Kapakule, the minister said. 

Surveying on the Bulgarian side will start in January next year, Alexiev said. According to him, the crossing will allow about 70,000 to 80,000 trucks to cross the river, loaded on combined trains, which will ease road traffic.