site.btaBDZ Increases Train Fares by 20%

Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ) is changing the prices of train tickets due to the drastic increase in the company's costs over the past few years, the press centre of the national railway carrier said. The increase will be 20% on average and will come into effect from May 7. The prices of the Child, Student, Family, TPL and Adult rail passes, which have a symbolic value of BGN 1, will remain unchanged.

The national rail carrier has not changed its prices since the beginning of 2012, with the exception of a 1.8% indexation in 2020. For the period 2021 to the end of 2023 alone, the company's costs have increased by 23.2%. This includes increases in core fuel, electricity and employee pay costs, given that BDZ is one of the largest employers in the country. According to the National Statistical Institute, the inflation index for the period 2021-2023 is 31.9%. This is the reason why the national rail carrier is updating its prices in line with increased costs, the release said.

Children up to the age of seven will be transported free of charge on presentation of a document certifying the child's age and the compulsory issue of a zero fare ticket.

On April 1, the outgoing cabinet approved nearly BGN 32 million for the purchase of 76 modernised carriages for BDZ-Passenger Transport and granted a BGN 154.6 million interest-free loan to the National Railway Infrastructure Company for two railway projects.