site.btaDemocratic Bulgaria Calls for Urgent Changes to Crash Barrier Regulations

The opposition coalition Democratic Bulgaria (DB) calls for urgent amendments to a Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works regulation governing road safety barriers, arguing that the current rules are restrictive, anti-competitive, and compromise road safety. Speaking to reporters in parliament and quoted by the coalition press office Wednesday, MP Chilo Popov said the coalition wants changes to Regulation No. 02-20 of 2024, which sets the technical requirements for road restraint systems.

"The regulation is entirely lobby-driven and imposes very restrictive conditions and parameters for approved crash barriers and restraint systems," Popov said. "We propose expanding the range of permitted restraint systems to allow competition and the introduction of other reliable products already used in countries such as the Netherlands and Germany."

He also argued that the required containment performance class should be updated to reflect the realities of heavy-duty vehicles, including overloaded trucks driving on on Bulgarian roads.

"We must put an end to crash barriers that crumple like waffles and can withstand vehicles weighing only up to 1,500 kilograms," Popov said.

Democratic Bulgaria also announced that it will submit a parliamentary declaration for a vote, calling on the 52nd National Assembly to express a clear political commitment across party lines to take decisive action to improve road safety.

Ivaylo Mirchev, co-chair of the Yes, Bulgaria party, which is part of the Democratic Bulgaria coalition, alleged that the existing standards for road restraint systems benefit only a small number of companies with ties to previous governments.

"We have had concrete proposals to amend the regulation since 2020, including the installation of different types of barriers, such as New Jersey concrete median barriers where feasible, and stronger metal guardrails where they are not," Mirchev said. "The goal is to prevent killer trucks from crossing into oncoming traffic on motorways."

Mirchev also called for stricter enforcement of existing road safety regulations. He said many weigh stations integrated into Bulgaria's toll system are not operating, allowing overloaded trucks to continue using the country's roads.

He urged the Executive Agency Automobile Administration to increase inspections at the country's border crossings and called on the traffic police to step up roadside checks.

"Very often, trucks are driving with worn-out tires that have little or no tread and are in extremely poor condition. This poses a serious danger," Mirchev said.