site.btaSofia Municipality Provides Transportation for School Graduates at Upcoming Matriculation Exams

On the days of the matriculation exams, the Sofia Municipality teams will be available from 5:00 to 8:00 a.m. to transport the high school graduates and teachers overseeing the exams to the educational institutions where the exams will take place, the Municipality's press centre announced on Monday. In connection with the interruption of ground public transport and the state matriculation exams, the Sofia Municipality is organizing transport and access to schools on May 21 and 23 in order to guarantee the normal conduct of the exams.

For high school graduates and teachers without access to transport, the Municipality has provided free transport with over 90 vehicles, including two buses, nine minibuses, official cars of the municipal and regional administrations. In addition, taxi companies will also provide free of charge services. Up to 400 graduates and teachers are expected to be served. Routes are tailored to individual addresses and times of attendance.

Graduates in need of transportation or their parents and teachers can submit information to the principal of the school where they study or work.

Mayor of Sofia Vassil Terziev issued an order to allow parking in the yards of municipal schools on both exam days, provided that the school management decides this is possible. The permit will apply to teachers and graduates participating in the exams.

The initiative is coordinated by the Sofia Municipality’s Directorate of Education and the Department of Social Activities and Integration of People with Disabilities, in cooperation with the Regional Department of Education – Sofia City and school principals.

Earlier today, Mayor Vassil Terziev spoke with representatives of the protesters in public transport. “We simply reaffirmed our respective stances,” Terziev said on Monday morning. “I reiterated why I believe the proposal I have made is the right one and how it addresses the core issues we are facing,” he explained.

The blockade of surface public transit in Sofia will continue, Vice President of the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) Todor Kapitanov told journalists after a meeting with Sofia Mayor Vassil Terziev on Monday. “We are initiating a procedure of indefinite strike actions, so within the day our demands will be submitted,” he added.