Raising toll fees and returning the prices of all vignettes to pre-COVID pandemic levels - this is what the draft budget of the ''Zhelyazkov" cabinet provides for. This would mean that the annual vignette will again cost 97 leva, Nova TV reported.
In the future, if the provision remains in the draft budget, the annual vignette will be 97 leva, the quarterly 54, the monthly 30 leva, and the weekly 15. If we compare with the prices now - the annual is 10 leva. cheaper, the quarterly one by 6 leva, and the monthly one by 3 leva.
The news about the planned return of the old prices of vignettes and an increase in the prices of toll fees met with immediate disapproval from the road transport companies.
Information appeared in the public space that this was being done because of a drop in revenues of 300 million leva. "If there really is a leak of 300 million, by raising the fees, it could become 500 million or even 1 billion leva. And they still won't have enough money" believes the executive director of the Chamber of Road Transport Companies in Bulgaria, Dimitar Dimitrov.
However, data published by BG TOL show something else - the collected revenues from road tolls for 2024. are 13% more than in 2023, which represents an increase of 92 million leva.
The Regional Ministry justified the changes in position: "The proposal was made after an analysis that reflects inflation, increased prices of materials used for road network maintenance, as well as the financial condition of the state", the department wrote.
Against this background, an expert meeting was held today at the Ministry of Finance between Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, unions and employers, at which the parameters of the budget were discussed.
The social partners did not reach a full consensus with the state's plans. Business did not like the idea of raising social security income by 10% per year.
The unions, on the other hand, saw in the budget a concession in income policy - referring to increases in the administration by 5, not 10%. Thus, the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation scheduled for tomorrow will not take place. It is expected that the social partners will hold a Tripartite meeting with the Ministry of Finance again next week.