Since the beginning of the year, 106 people, including six children, have died in 90 road accidents on the territory of the country, said Commissioner Dimitar Michev, Head of the "Traffic Police" Department at the General Directorate (DG) "National Police" at a briefing in Veliko Tarnovo. By April 27, 1,660 road accidents with injured people were registered on the territory of Bulgaria, with 106 dead and 2,077 injured.
Compared to the same period last year, road accidents have decreased by 303, but the number of people killed is the same, Michev specified. In 12 regional directorates of the Ministry of Interior, more deaths in accidents were registered. According to statistics, the highest number of deaths occurred on the first-class republican road network - 21 deaths and 237 injuries. A total of 10 people died on motorways (AM), with 60 injured.
The highest concentration of road accidents is on the AM “Trakia“, on the road from Vidin to the checkpoint “Kulata“ and on the road “Ruse – Veliko Tarnovo – Haskovo – Makaza”, Commissioner Michev pointed out. Of the deaths, 62 were drivers, 16 were pedestrians and 28 were passengers in vehicles. Of the six children who died, one was a pedestrian, the rest were riding in cars, and 280 children were injured in accidents.
Since the beginning of the year, over two and a half million checks have been carried out, and nearly one million drivers have been checked. The number of acts issued to drivers who have consumed alcohol is 3,087, over 700 are for crimes with a blood alcohol content of over 1.2. “Prevention is very important to us, which is why the visible presence of police patrols on the road is one of the best measures“, said Michev. He added that by June 9, 187 new technical means of speed control will be put into operation, and so far over 300 speed control systems are available.
According to Michev, more and more people on the roads are taking into account the fact that among the participants in the traffic there may be an unmarked vehicle of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which can sanction. The toll system, which will record average speed, will be introduced as a preventive measure on the roads after a decision by specialists from the National Institute of Metrology, said Michev. He specified that within three months after the specialists decide on the approved type for monitoring the average speed, the designated points for controlling the average speed will be included. Currently, there are 14 on the Trakia Motorway, eight on the Hemus Motorway, six on the Struma Motorway, but additional analysis is pending. Stationary cameras for instantaneous speed will be installed on the first-class roads. The specialists from the Traffic Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs issued an "abstain" opinion regarding the reduction of the age for obtaining a driving license.
A national meeting was held in Veliko Tarnovo today with the participation of employees from the Traffic Police Department and the throughout the country, where activities for prevention and control of road traffic were discussed. The meeting was attended by Senior Commissioner Kaloyan Miltenov, Deputy Director of the General Directorate of the National Police, and Commissioner Dimitar Michev, Head of the Traffic Police Department at the General Directorate of the National Police.