site.btaBDZ, Deutsche Bahn Sign Contract for Delivery of 76 Modernized Carriages

"BDZ-Passenger Transport and Deutsche Bahn have signed a contract for the delivery of 76 modernized passenger cars, the Transport  Ministry  said.   

The first 19 cars will arrive in Bulgaria in April and the remaining 57 will be delivered on schedule by early June. With them Bulgarian State Railways will modernize more than 20% of its rolling stock and will serve the busiest routes from Sofia to Varna, Burgas and Ruse.  

The contract includes the supply of 60 saloon-type passenger carriages coaches for second-class travel, six specialized passenger coaches for the carriage of disabled persons and bicycles, and ten bistro carriages. The total value of the contract is BGN 30.5 million, which includes all costs of their delivery to Bulgaria. The unit price per car amounts to BGN 391, 166.   

At the end of January, outgoing Transport Minister Georgi Gvozdeikov said that the ministry and BDZ were in the final phase of negotiations for the purchase of modernized rolling stock from Deutsche Bahn. A week later, representatives of the Transport Ministry and BDZ travelled to Leipzig and visited Deutsche Bahn's base to inspect the rolling stock and clear up all the details of the deal. In Gvozdeikov's words, this is the first visible step in the reform of the Bulgarian railways, which for 30 years has been carried out only on paper.  

The rolling stock meets all modern standards of comfort, is equipped with an air conditioning system, as well as with an information system to notify passengers of the stations and stops along the train route. The last scheduled overhaul of the carriages was carried out between 2018 and 2022, and they were in service on the German rail network until December 2023, the Ministry added.