site.btaResidents Demand Removal of Plovdiv Ring Road Guardrails after Fatal Accident

Residents of Plovdiv and surrounding villages in the Rhodope foothills held a protest on the city's ring road and briefly blocked traffic on Wednesday morning to press their demand for the immediate removal of metal guardrails. Their anger followed a road accident in which a family, including their 14-year-old daughter, died, while their seven-year-old child remains in serious condition.

The protesters argue that even if drivers have a minimal chance to avoid an accident by steering off the road, the guardrails restrict them. For years, the road has been nicknamed the "death lane," and citizens say the government has done nothing to change this.

The demonstrators called for all steel barriers installed on the road in 2021 to be removed by December 10.

Desislava Terzieva, mayor of the village of Markovo, cited data on accidents on the Plovdiv ring road showing that, since the installation of the barriers, fatal incidents have doubled compared to previous years. She has initiated a second petition for the removal of the guardrails and urged residents of the Rhodope foothill villages to participate.

In addition to removing the guardrails, people are demanding immediate action to widen the road, which currently has only one lane in each direction. Thousands of vehicles pass daily, the road is extremely congested, and traffic jams last all day, protesters said.

Road Infrastructure Agency Chair Yordan Valchev said back in June that the widening of the Plovdiv ring road is expected to begin at the end of 2026 or the start of 2027.