Google Street View cars are back on Bulgarian roads, starting a new mapping tour that will span from March 5 until the end of October. Over the coming months, the vehicles will cover more than 20,000 kilometers across the country, updating images on Google Maps to reflect recent changes in streets, roads, neighborhoods, and landmarks. This year, the tour will include over 30 cities and towns, such as Sofia, Plovdiv, Burgas, Haskovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Pazardzhik, Sandanski, Petrich, Samokov, and Yambol, capturing both urban streets and key road connections frequently used by residents, businesses, and tourists.

Updating Street View is important because infrastructure and urban environments are constantly evolving. New residential areas, road sections, industrial zones, and public spaces are built each year, and regular imaging ensures Google Maps accurately reflects these developments. Accurate maps help users navigate, plan routes, and explore locations in advance. For businesses, the platform offers greater visibility: Google Maps hosts information on over 250 million places and is accessed by more than two billion people monthly, with over 10 million websites and apps using the Google Maps Platform to reach global customers. Street View also supports tourism and investment by providing realistic, up-to-date visual representations of regions.

The technology behind Street View relies on cars equipped with specialized 360-degree cameras that capture panoramic images. Privacy is protected through automated blurring of faces and license plates, and users can request additional blurring of specific images, whether people, vehicles, or properties, via the “Report a problem” feature in Google Maps. The Bulgarian tour will begin in the coming weeks, and the updated imagery will help both residents and visitors navigate the country while providing a fresh view of its evolving infrastructure.