site.btaDraft 2026 Municipal Budget Earmarks Largest Investment in Sofia Public Transport in 15 Years – Mayor Terziev

Sofia's draft 2026 municipal budget provides for the largest investment in urban transport in the past 15 years, including the purchase of 150 new trams, 200 new buses, 75 new trolleybuses and 50 electric buses, Sofia Mayor Vasil Terziev wrote on Facebook.

After these deliveries, the oldest trams still in operation will be those manufactured after 2013. The total investment exceeds EUR 270 million and also includes the modernization of depots and other transport infrastructure, Terziev said.

He noted that when the first tram began operating on Sofia’s streets 125 years ago, it set the course toward a more connected and more modern city for the people it served.

Today, Sofia continues along the path of sustainable urban mobility, with trams remaining part of the daily lives of generations of Sofia residents. The city’s responsibility is to further develop this system through consistent and meaningful investments, the Mayor said.

According to Terziev, important steps have been taken over the past year. A total of 4.4 kilometres of new tram tracks have been built, including the new line along the extension of Rozhen Boulevard, which directly connects the Iliantsi neighbourhood with the metro and the city centre. The full reconstruction of the tram line along Alexander Stamboliyski Boulevard is also at an advanced stage, marking its first major overhaul since it was built.

“In 2026, we are moving to the next, much larger-scale phase,” Terziev said. Projects are being prepared and implemented to upgrade and build tram lines along Maria Luiza, James Bourchier and Skobelev boulevards, as well as along 104 Street in the Obelya district. This will involve simultaneous improvements to the oldest lines, modernization of key central routes and the creation of a new direct link between the Mladost and Druzhba neighbourhoods via Copenhagen Boulevard, alongside further investment in rolling stock, he added.

Sofia is the only city in Bulgaria with a tram transport system. The goal is to make it fast, reliable and convenient – a real alternative to car use and a foundation for the sustainable future of the capital, Terziev said.