Head of Bulgaria’s road agency offers resignation after protest over child’s death

Sofia: Following the protest march in memory of 12-year-old Siyana, who died in a road accident, the chairman of Bulgaria’s Road Infrastructure Agency (RIA), Yordan Valchev, stated he is willing to resign if that would help address the longstanding issues with road safety.

Valchev acknowledged that the problems on Bulgaria’s roads have accumulated over many years, and if his resignation could prevent further child fatalities, he would submit it without hesitation.

He noted that the section of the road where Siyana lost her life is in poor condition, primarily due to years of neglect and the lack of highway construction. According to him, only partial repairs have been carried out because closing the road entirely would cut off access between Southern and Northern Bulgaria. However, he assured that a major overhaul of the road is scheduled to begin after June.

Eng. Stoyan Nikolov, also a member of the RIA Board, confirmed that prior to the fatal accident, two police reports had been filed regarding the section. As a result, an order had already been issued to install speed-limiting signs. The police recommended limiting traffic to 70 km/h, but an additional measure was taken to reduce the speed to 60 km/h in the area with new signage.

To improve road safety, plans are underway to add red pavement markings for better traction and transverse rumble strips to alert drivers as they approach the dangerous stretch. Nikolov emphasized that the RIA has already identified short-term actions with potentially significant impact on national road safety.

He cited a Ministry of Interior report published in late March, based on data from the previous year, which identified 36 accident-prone road sections across the country. The agency will prioritize safety improvements in these high-risk areas.

The protest march, organized by the “Angels of the Road” association, took place in Sofia, starting at the Courthouse and passing by the Ministry of Justice and the National Assembly. The demonstration occurred one week after the crash that claimed young Siyana’s life.