site.btaGovernment Pledges Support for Key Road Infrastructure in Smolyan Region

Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov discussed the construction of an expressway between Asenovgrad and Smolyan and the improvement of transport accessibility in the Rhodopi Mountains with Nikolay Nankov, Chair of the parliamentary Committee on Regional Policy, Public Works and Local Self-Government, and two MPs for Smolyan, Krasimir Sabev and Halil Letifov, the government information service said on Tuesday.

Also attending were Regional Development Minister Ivan Ivanov, Road Infrastructure Agency Board Chairman Yordan Valchev, Smolyan Mayor Nikolay Melemov, mayors of other municipalities in the region, and Smolyan Regional Governor Zahari Sirakov.

The government pledged to support the implementation of the region's key road infrastructure. Procedures for awarding the prepared technical design of the project are set to begin in 2026. The aim is to complete, as quickly as possible, a partial widening of the Asenovgrad–Smolyan road to three lanes, including the Chepelare bypass. At the same time, a technical design and all the necessary procedures are being prepared to further widen the entire road into a four-lane expressway.

The meeting also highlighted the region's development potential by attracting more investment and creating sustainable jobs, with an emphasis on the importance of transport connectivity for business development.