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In Bulgaria, more people are opting for buses over trains as the preferred mode of transport, according to preliminary data from the National Statistical Institute for the third quarter of 2025. Overall, freight carried by land and water transport rose by 18.6% compared to the same period last year, while the work performed increased by 9.2%. Passenger transport, covering land, water, and urban electric systems, saw a 14% growth in passengers, though the total work performed fell by 10.7%.
Land transport
Freight moved by land transport totaled 36,187.9 thousand tons in the third quarter, marking a 21.2% increase over the same period in 2024. Domestic land transport grew by 26.1%, while international transport rose by 7.8%. The total work performed reached 8,479.5 million ton-kilometers, reflecting a 9.8% increase.
Passenger land transport carried 115,333.6 thousand travelers, a 22.2% rise compared to the previous year. Bus transport experienced the strongest growth at 23.6%, whereas rail transport declined slightly by 0.6%. The total work performed in passenger land transport dropped to 2,214.4 million passenger-kilometers, a decrease of 14.3%, driven by shorter average travel distances on buses.
Water transport and urban electric transport
Cargo transported via river and sea routes decreased by 531.8 thousand tons compared to the same quarter in 2024, with a corresponding 5.2% decline in work performed. Passenger numbers on water transport fell slightly by 69.5 thousand, but the work performed increased by 11.9%, attributed to longer travel distances.
Urban electric transport enterprises saw passenger traffic rise by 4.5% to 83,506 thousand, with the total work performed reaching 492.4 million passenger-kilometers, representing a 9.1% increase.
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