Minister Shishkov: The part of Hemus Motorway from Sofia to Yana - less asphalt, more slag

Following the joint inspection of the Maritsa Motorway, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works are continuing with an inspection of the Northern Expressway

A joint inspection by the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works of the Hemus Motorway in December found that the section from Sofia to Yana had less asphalt than required and slag embedded in the subgrade. This was announced by the Minister of Regional Development and Public Works architect Ivan Shishkov during his participation in the program “Wake Up” on Nova TV. With a requirement for 28 cm of asphalt, the samples taken showed the presence of between 18 and 21 cm, and slag in the earth base was in large quantity. He gave evidence that in this part of the motorway construction started in 2011, in 2013 the traffic was started but the permit for use was only from 2016. “That is, someone has waited in time for when and how to put this section into operation,” said Minister Shishkov.

He said the joint inspections of the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works will continue because for the most part, the roads are not done the way they should be done according to the designs and projections. “We could not build the motorways, we built less than half of the motorways and we are already starting to repair the ones we have built,” the Regional Minister stated.

The results of the Maritsa Motorway inspection are awaited and the Northern Expressway will be inspected in the coming week. Some of the problems on the Maritsa Motorway are due to the fact that materials were most likely skimped or inappropriate materials were used. Minister Shishkov commented that funds will be found for repairs to the identified deficiencies because it affects traffic safety. “The attitude of the state towards the construction process has not been what it should and the results are there,” he said. And he pointed to the Yugovo-Lucky Road he inspected just a day ago, which is an example of construction fakery. The rock mass there has been seized and so the road needs cleaning of the stones. “And I can say that instead of snow clearing, there has to be stone clearing twice every day - it’s appalling. The road there has been widened by more than a metre and the rock mass has not been consolidated properly. There is no opening of the road at all. That’s why I called it a construction fakery,” the regional minister noted.

Apart from the poor quality of the repairs, the problem there is that the overhaul was carried out with paperwork for an ongoing one and so it becomes impossible for anyone to take responsibility for the quality of the work done. In order to avoid such problems in the future, in the new tenders for road maintenance the contracts have been split. One is formulated for routine repairs, allowing for elements of major repairs, so that if such works are carried out, they have a building permit, as the law requires. Separate will be the major repair orders for which designs will be prepared. The separation has been done to enable smaller companies to participate in the tenders.

The procedure will be fully transparent and so will the construction, because this is good not only for the road users but also for the construction industry, Minister Shishkov promised.

He also specified the timeline for the future construction of the Hemus Motorway. On Lot 5, the illegal construction done so far will be removed and the designs for Lots 5 and 6 will be approved so that construction can begin there.  The detailed development plan for Lot 9 has been approved. “Lot 4 is trapped in illegal construction as there is a large scope of illegal construction and the lawmakers were unwilling to find a legal mechanism in which the construction can continue,” the regional minister recalled. And reiterated that the construction of the lots for which advances have been given will not be indexed. I told the companies that since they have received 35% advance and there are no indexation clauses in their contracts, they cannot get such money. Now the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, the state and the construction industry are in a huge trap and we are all suffering from this trap, the minister said. The creators of the construction fakery, the former rulers of a few years ago, are the beneficiaries of all these created problems. And today the whole society is paying. However, this can no longer continue like this, architect Shishkov was adamant.

The state is now in need of repairs because the infrastructure facilities built in the last 6-7 years are in need of overhaul. He assured that all of the legacy problems are being addressed. “Right now, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works is making an effort to reverse the direction of thinking, the direction of work, the direction of action in this industry, I think we are on the right track and we are moving in that direction, more so that some of the motorways we are starting little by little to finalise them,” he said. And he gave the example of the Europe Motorway, where in 1 - 1,5 months the traffic to the border could be launched in this section, “which I called the road of the bone”, and in a few months progress is expected in the part from Sofia to Slivnitsa. If the whole lot is completed in 2024, European funding for the site will not be lost.

In a few months, 7 km of the Botevgrad-Mezdra expressway will be opened, which will ease the bypass of Novachene. Next week, a permit will be issued for the strengthening of the landslide on the Struma Motorway so that traffic in both lanes can be gradually released.

“Work is being done in all these directions, where problems were forgotten for a year,” architect Shishkov summed up.