Sofia New Metro to Ease Traffic Jams by 20%

The second line of the subway in Sofia will be officially launched on August 31. File photo

The launch of the second metro diameter in the Bulgarian capital Sofia is expected to reduce traffic in the city by 20%.

The second line of the subway in Sofia will be officially launched on August 31, in the presence of the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso.

The largest, private TV channel bTV reports Monday that the last finishing touches are underway, while the test runs of the new subway trains have started several days ago.

The second line will have 11 stations and will connect the districts of Obelya and Lozenets. The line has a capacity of 130 000 passengers a day. It will be served by 11 new energy saving metro trains.

The CEO of the municipal Metropolitan company, Stoyan Bratoev, says that the new line will save Sofia residents and visitors 65 000 hours of travel time every day. The subway will also reduce air pollution.

Several stations will have parking lots with hundreds of parking spaces.

In addition, the stations are built to sustain earthquakes up to a 9-point magnitude on the Richter scale and can be used as quake shelters. The subway also boasts maximum security with all anti-terrorism measures in place and with cameras monitoring every inch of the tracks and all stations.

The launch of the second metro diameter will coincide with the opening of the beautiful Largo in the heart of the capital.