BDZ Trains Reach Speed of 130 km/h in Northern Bulgaria
Business | September 5, 2008, Friday

Some Bulgarian trains will be able to run at a speed of 130 km/h after rehabilitation of the main railroad in the northern part of the country. Photo by Kameliya Atanassova (
Sofia Photo Agency)
Representatives of Bulgaria's National Railroad Infrastructure Company announced Friday that the trains in the central northern part of the country would be able to run at a speed of 130 km/h.
The increase in the speed of the trains of the state railways BDZ in the region around the city of Pleven is possible thanks to recent repairs and investments in the improvement of the railroad.
The 130 km-speed will be possible in the 108-km stretch between the town of Cherven bryag and the village of Butovo, which is a part of the main railway Sofia-Varna and Sofia-Ruse.
The same speed will also be possible on the secondary railroad line Svishtov-Levski-Troyan, which is a distance of 131 km.
The Ministry of Transport has also initiated talks with the local authorities in the Haskovo region in southeast Bulgaria in order to arrange the rehabilitation of the Plovdiv-Svilengrad railway running to the country's border with Greece and Turkey.
The repairs will allow the trains to run at 160 km/h in the 143-km stretch of the rail line. They also include the electrification of the Plovdiv-Svilengrad railway.
The project will cost a total of EUR 340 M, of which EUR 150 M are a loan from the European Investment Bank, EUR 153 M come from EU's ISPA Program, and the remaining EUR 137 M are from the national budget.
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Author: snafu, 6 Sep 2008 05:22:53
BDZ Trains Reach Speed of 130 km/h in Northern Bulgaria
None of these speeds are fast. Even in the US there are stretches of track where trains regularly do 170km/h!!! Many stretches of track are over 200km/h!
Seriously, WTF?
Author: Buddy, 6 Sep 2008 07:40:41
Trains
Wow. So finaly the guys started to understand that railway transport will be cheaper then truck transport!Afteer almost 18 years of destruction of the national railroad system introduced by doing nothing in the early ninenties when modernization was hardly needed and privatization of everything possible... now somebody starts to speak about speed instead of security,,,,
Everything is a joke....
Author: Taro, 6 Sep 2008 11:43:38
Trains
In Germany trains run some 300km/h...
130km/h is the speed limit on the Autobahn in BG.
But anyway, it's good to improve train infrastructure in BG as a serious, ecological and safe alternative to cars, busses and TIR.
Greets
Taro
Author: CJB, 6 Sep 2008 12:10:28
Trains
This has to be positive. Anything that can help freight and travellers off the road will help ease congestion, improve safety, and be less destructive to both roads and the environment.
More rail investment in BG, please!
Author: resipsaloquitur, 6 Sep 2008 17:01:29
Trains
Taro,
you are exagerating...
I was last month in Frankfurt/Main and it took me 4 and half hours from Berlin.
I think ICE trains run with 120km per hour.