site.btaInterior Minister: Road Discipline Should Become Driver's First Thought

Road discipline should become a driver's first thought, Interior Minister Daniel Mitov told journalists in Sliven on Thursday

Asked by journalists whether the government's measures to reduce road accidents could be implemented as soon as possible, Mitov stressed that if Parliament, its committees and the executive branch coordinate their work well enough, then things can be achieved relatively quickly. He gave an example of connecting cameras of municipalities with the system of the Interior Ministry and finding a mechanism for processing this data, as well as legislative changes to increase penalties and fines for road violations, as police officers could start imposing fines on the spot and removing cars from traffic for non-payment of a fine.

Mitov also cited as an example the initiative of the Sliven police, which are already successfully patrolling the streets with unmarked cars. "We will make this a national policy, we will technically secure what has been done so far," the minister said, praising the work of the Regional Directorate of the Interior Ministry (RDIM) in Sliven also in relation to cases of domestic violence.

He emphasised that the condition of the roads and highways in the country is poor and pointed out that the terrifying political timelessness since 2021 is the reason for this. "This led to stagnation and sclerosis of all institutions. We are currently trying to give them direction and discipline the institutions again so that they know where to focus their efforts," he stressed. He was categorical that not only should the condition of the existing roads be improved, but also that new ones should be built. "All of Northern Bulgaria is waiting for the construction of the Hemus motorway. The Black Sea motorway, the Shipka tunnel, and so on should be built," Mitov said.

Senior Commissioner Dimitar Velichkov, Director of the RDIM in Sliven, outlined the priorities the directorate has worked on in 2024. Among them are road safety and road injuries, as well as counteraction to the spread of drugs. There was no increase in domestic crime, while an increase was noted in the detection of criminal and economic crimes.