Trains in bulgaria. All about the railways of bulgaria Ticket prices for some directions

First-hand information about railways in Bulgaria: types of tickets, fare, calculations, how much it costs to get from Sofia to Burgas and other cities, information about luggage storage, types of carriages, photos and descriptions of how Bulgaria trains look, instructions on how to buy a ticket on Bulgarian trains and other tips

The railway system in Bulgaria was formed back in Soviet times, and since then has not undergone major changes. And if more or less decent Bulgarian trains are put on international routes, from new ones, then domestic traffic is served by well-worn trains. In terms of comfort, vehicles look preferable. For example, on routes between major cities buses leave every hour. In addition, trains in Bulgaria take a long time, and where a voyage spends less than 5 hours on the way, the railway takes 6-7 hours. However, there is a small gain in money: the price of train tickets in Bulgaria is lower than the cost of travel in buses. If you can get from Sofia to Burgas by bus for about 24 levs, then the train will cost 21 levs. In addition, you can save money by immediately buying a round-trip ticket. Such a travel pass in Bulgaria costs a third less, and for a voyage from Sofia to Burgas, the whole trip will take 30 leva.

But not everything is so simple: alas, you will have to save at the expense of comfort. The bus has at least "airplane" seats, while the seated cars of the Bulgarian railways lack this convenience, and the sleeping rooms, which, in theory, can be reached at night from Sofia to Varna or Burgas, are equipped with shelves in three rows - that's another kind of entertainment. ... In short, personally, I'm not at all sure whether it is worth traveling around Bulgaria by train. Well, if you really want to, then if you please, here are the clues ...

The Bulgarian Railways website contains a minimum of information. There is no Russian interface, so we will immediately switch to English.

From the whole modest menu, tourists, in fact, need one single item, namely "Timetable". Having done the appropriate manipulations and clicking on the "Search" button, the future passenger gets access to the page where you can find the schedule of the Bulgarian railways.

As you can see from the example, less than ten trains run from Sofia to Burgas per day, of which only three are direct. Pressing the "Fares" button allows you to understand how much the tickets of the Bulgarian railways cost.

As you can see from the example, to get to Burgas from Sofia, you need to pay 21 levs. The fare is reduced if a group of 3 to 6 passengers is traveling.

Now let's consider the question of how to buy tickets for Bulgaria trains online. Actually, the Bulgarian railways do not experience an influx of people who wish, but it may happen that it will be necessary to make an order in advance. Therefore, we turn to the ticket booking system. It looks like this:

In order to buy a ticket for the Bulgarian train online, you need to register by entering your data, including a mobile phone number, which must be indicated only in numbers, without a plus at the beginning; as practice shows, Russian numbers are quite suitable. Upon completion of the formalities, a letter with a password will drop into the mailbox of the new client, and the mail address will serve as the login.

Once you have entered the system, you can begin the purchase process. After choosing the departure and arrival stations, the traveler in the next step sees a list of available travel options.

Depending on which train of the Bulgarian railways the client preferred, different possibilities open up for him. For example, in daytime trains, only first and second class seats are available.

The vacant seats are marked in white, the occupied ones are in gray.

The night trains of the Bulgarian railways include sleeping cars. Here you can choose either first or second class, as well as the level of comfort. The worst option is a three-seater compartment, where the distance between the shelves only allows you to lie down. There is a minimum of free space in them, and the whole trip will be one continuous nightmare. It's easier to pay a little extra and go first class. Well, in this example, the passenger is given to decide on which of the three shelves he will sleep, if, of course, he can fit in and fall asleep.

In any case, whether we are talking about sitting or sleeping cars of the Bulgarian railways, after choosing a seat, you will have to pay in full for the order. Do it easy peasy, fortunately, there is nothing to choose from.

When paying, you need to enter information about your bank card, and voila, tickets for Bulgarian trains, consider, purchased ...

On arrival at the station, you should not expect any specialties. If large stations look decent, then small ones are mostly forgotten and abandoned. This is the Burgas station, and it is only pretty from the outside. There are a minimum of amenities inside.

The ads are understandable even without translation into English. No wonder they say, they say, Bulgarian and Russian are twin brothers ...

There are almost no places for waiting, most people have to wait for the train on the platforms. There is a left-luggage office not everywhere: it is present in Burgas, and, for example, those leaving Sofia should go to the bus station.

This is nothing more than an international train timetable ...

But not everything is so bad: in the corner of the hall there is an electronic board of local flights, which looks "one hundred percent". In my opinion, the information displayed on it does not need translation ...

It is best to wait for departure in the fresh air ...

This is what the Bulgarian trains look like on closer inspection.

Typical Soviet layout adjusted for local flavor.

The coupe looks quite modern, there are even sockets. But don't be fooled by the decent appearance: the worn, faded seats are quite loudly reminiscent of the age of the carriage. And, of course, it should be remembered that all the way, that is, 6-8 hours, passengers will have to sit opposite each other, without the ability to properly stretch their legs.

In a word, Bulgarian trains are far from the best way to travel around the country ...

"I do not want! I won't! It is morally outdated! " - with such screams, I threw a blue dress straight at my friend laughing at me. We packed our suitcases so cheerfully on our Bulgarian vacation. This was followed by a fashion show in swimsuits and pillow fights. Where do I start a story about the railroad with references to my wardrobe? Because the Bulgarian trains are as outdated as my silk dress. I got out of the situation by complementing the outfit with a beautiful necklace and sandals with heels. True, I moved on them like a paralyzed grasshopper. But this is a completely different story ... Bulgarian railroad workers also followed a similar path. Instead of sending old trains to hell and completely replacing rolling stock with newer models, they simply refurbished the seats on the trains and added new sleeping cars. But let's move from dresses and lyrics to practice. Today I will tell you all about the railways of Bulgaria.

Railways of Bulgaria, what they are

The state-owned company "Balgarski Dzhavni Zheleznitsi" (BDZ) provides its services for the transportation of passengers throughout most of the territory of Bulgaria. Why mostly? Because many towns and villages do not have stations. And sometimes, in order to get to the desired point, you have to make several transfers.

Trains, as you already understood, come from the USSR. They are repaired from time to time, but they clearly do not reach the title of "European". However, the ticket price is a plus. Traveling around Bulgaria can be quite budgetary.

Bulgaria has international connections with Turkey, Greece, Serbia and Romania. You can see the schedule here.

First of all, I want to tell you a little about the categories of trains, so that you have an idea of ​​what and in what conditions you will have to go to this or that town.

Categories of bulgarian trains

The local population does not bother with the detailed division of trains into categories, so any Bulgarians will say that there are only three types of trains:

• ordinary local;
• fast local;
• express trains, following popular tourist routes.

I suppose this information will not be enough for you. Well, I'll be a good girl and try to tell you about all the categories of Bulgarian trains in the world.

Types of wagons

There is no countless number of different types of cars in Bulgaria, as in Italy, for example (if you want to read about the railway of this country, then click). Everything is extremely simple here - sitting cars and sleeping cars. I'll tell you about them.

Seated carriages

Most of the trains in Bulgaria are daytime, which means that the overwhelming majority of carriages are sit-down. They look like this.

This daytime sit-down trains with compartments.

As you can see, there is a small corridor, the passenger seats from which are separated by glass doors. The compartment has two rows of soft seats.

In the second class, one compartment has eight seats (two four-seater sofas opposite each other), and in the first - six (two sofas, each consisting of three chairs), there is space for luggage, hooks for clothes and where to stretch your legs. :)

Theoretically, if no one else is traveling in your compartment, you can take a horizontal position and fall asleep, because the handles between adjacent seats rise.

There is also day trains with shared carriages and without division into a compartment.

The chairs in them are arranged according to the "2 + 2" scheme. Such compositions look like this.

Sleeping cars

They can only be found on night flights. Fortunately, old-style carriages with six shelves and shabby walls are a thing of the past. For there is nothing good about them. Three shelves on each side and neither sit normally nor stand up. There are, of course, cars with SV-class compartments, where there are only two shelves, but this is also a dubious pleasure.

And such a gloomy corridor is waiting for you in old trains. And if two people are walking towards each other, then trying to miss each other can become a very intimate action. :)

Old school trains are gradually being replaced by new, comfortable trains.

I’ll tell you about them, because if you go by night train, it’s most likely in these trains. Sleeping cars are divided into three classes:

• in business class, the compartment is designed for one person;
• in first class - for two passengers;
• and in the second, respectively, for three travelers.

At the entrance to the carriage we are met by a video camera. The corridor itself is very narrow and uncomfortable. The compartment is small and clean.

There are a lot of different sensors and buttons for controlling lighting, sound, launching nuclear weapons.

Hooks to hang your outfits. And a ladder for those fortunate enough to travel on the second and third shelf.

There is a washbasin, towel and sockets.

The toilet is also of European size. Well, more or less European ...

There is even a shower.

Of the minuses, it should be mentioned that the sockets can be broken, there will be no water in the taps, and of the two toilets located in the carriage, only one will work - sadness. :(

It is worth remembering that such coupes are divided into male and female. If you are planning to travel with your soul mate in a second class compartment, be prepared to be accommodated in different compartments.

Actually, my knowledge about the Bulgarian trains is over. Now I'll tell you about tickets, travel discounts and options for purchasing travel cards.

Tickets and train discounts

There is very little information on the web regarding tickets. And a vacation in Bulgaria does not guarantee that you will become an expert in railway matters. It is best to refer to the official railroad website. According to him, there are two categories of tickets: computer and blank.

Computer tickets

These e-tickets are bought through the Belarusian Railways website (a little later I will tell you how this can be done). In addition to the classic information about the date of travel, direction, train number, ticket price, there can be a lot of other designations on the pass. For example:

• 1 / 2R-D- ticket for children from 7 to 10 years old.
• MG- a ticket for a small group traveling in one direction.
• 1 / 2L-B- ticket for the elderly.

Honestly, there is no point in writing and deciphering all these designations, since you will not need them on your trip. But, if you want to be knowledgeable in everything, then keep, by clicking on which, you can find out all the necessary information.

Blank tickets

You can buy such tickets at the box office. They indicate:

• carrier name;
• train category and number;
• car number and class;
• pick-up and drop-off station on the passenger's route;
• the validity of the ticket;
• ticket number;
• date of travel.

It is important to remember that the ticket is valid only for the train number for which it was issued. You cannot take another train in the same direction.

You can buy e-tickets only for the routes indicated on the website. The point of departure and arrival must be selected in the tabs, which I marked with arrows.

At the ticket office of the station, tickets can be purchased for any direction.

When buying tickets online, you only need documents to accurately enter all the data about passengers. And this is very important. At the station, the controller will check if the information on the tickets matches the information on the identity card.

Note: if you buy tickets for express trains and international routes at the box office, then you must have your passport with you.

Travel discounts

The railway of Bulgaria provides several types of different travel cards and cards, thanks to which you can save on travel. You can see their names in the screenshot.

So, here's who have the opportunity to travel cheaper:

• a passenger who has bought a ticket in both directions at once;
• holders of the youth and classic pass;
• regular customers of Belarusian Railways. You will fall into this category if you often use the services of Belarusian Railways, several times a week, for example, for a fairly long period of time. In this case, you can count on discounts. But I am telling you more about useful things specifically for tourists who have come to the country for a short time, so you can forget about this group of beneficiaries with peace of mind.
• groups of three to six people;
• students-citizens of any country, up to 26 years old, who travel in an organized group;
• children under the age of 7 (accompanied by an adult) travel free of charge.

All more detailed and, most importantly, up-to-date information about the age of passengers and the amount of discounts you can find on the Belarusian Railways website.

Inter Rail pass

This pass allows you to travel by train free of charge for a specified period. The cost of Inter Rail in Bulgaria is from 50 EUR.

You can take a closer look at all the current prices, the time periods during which the ticket is valid, here. And you can buy such a pass simply by clicking on this link.

Buying tickets

There are three ways to buy tickets:

• at the register;
• at the conductor;
• on the Belarusian Railways website.

I'll tell you in more detail about each of the methods.

Purchase at the checkout

Tickets can be easily bought at the ticket office of the station: Russian is understood here. Tell the cashier the direction, date and time of departure, the type and class of the carriage.

By the way, cash desks work mostly until 19:00, especially in small towns. There are no ticket offices at some stations.

For night trains, ticket sales end one hour before the train leaves. In addition, when I was there, passengers on night flights had to go to the ticket office before departure, and there the cashier manually wrote down the names of travelers on a piece of paper, distributed who was traveling in which carriage and compartment.

Buying a ticket on the train

You can also buy tickets from the conductor. In some cases, tickets may even cost you less than at the box office. Just do not expect that you will pass by a hare. Conductors pass the train more than once.

Buying tickets online

Meet the legend! The first online photo-instruction for buying tickets on the website of the railways of Bulgaria. Well, I want to believe that she is the first. And then at one time I scrolled to the fifth page in a Google search and found nothing. This is a kind of exclusive material. Straight from the front line. :)

First of all, you need to register on the site. To do this, fill out the following form, indicating:

• email;
• surname;
• phone number.

And immediately we pay attention to the text that appears on the website of the railway company on the right. These are online tips to help you buy your ticket. By the way, few European railway sites can boast of such a feature.

Having entered the mail, you will see this message with a password. Your email will serve as your login.

Now we return to the site and go through the authorization procedure.

Now we have two possible flights: morning and evening. I prefer to travel at night, so I take the train that leaves at 22:40. When you select a specific option, this block will turn blue.

Now we indicate the type of place. I choose a sleeping room in a second class carriage.

I marked with a rectangle a form where you can choose a discount option (if it was issued in advance). At this stage, the final cost of the ticket is formed.

Now comes the fun part: the choice of location. I liked the 31st. I press on it and reserve in this way for myself.

Ahtung! Here you need to be extremely careful and double-check all the data. If everything is okay, then choose a payment method.

Now we are completing the payment procedure.

All that remains to be done is to sigh happily or sadly over the money debited from the card, print a ticket and stomp with it to the station.

With the purchase sorted out, now I will tell you about several interesting points regarding railway transportation in Bulgaria.

Features of railways

There is nothing special that would distinguish the Bulgarian railways from our domestic ones, but still you need to know something about:

Summary

In order to become a guru in the field of the railway in Bulgaria, I need to go there a couple more times on vacation and replenish my knowledge box. But I also hope that what I have told you will help you in planning your vacation in a sunny country.

Bon voyage, comfortable compartments and pleasant impressions from your vacation!

As a railway lover, I have made many trips and photo excursions, but outside the former USSR I have never visited the railways of this or that country. When I flew to Bulgaria, after taking off from Domodedovo airport, our plane flew over the railway and I watched it from a height. But, ironically, when landing at the Burgas airport, our plane also flew over the railway, which at that moment was followed by an unknown passenger train. Looking down, I thought, shouldn't I make a study trip and take pictures of the local rolling stock? Why not!

But, of course, in the first days of rest there was no question of this: the sea, the sun ... But I did not think to give up the idea, I got a schedule for the Burgas station, chose the day of the trip. In the interval 13.45 - 14.30, several trains were expected from Burgas, which I decided to photograph. The trip was scheduled for August 10.
The road from Pomorie to Burgas took about 30 minutes, and now I am standing in front of the station building. At the station of the Burgas station, repair work was underway: the passenger platforms were repaired, the tracks were changed. But I was interested in the schedule, I had to double-check the information. All trains were displayed on the departure monitor, everything coincided in time, except, perhaps, the numbers and some routes. But I did not pay attention to the fact that the 3 trains that I planned to photograph in the column "track" had not a number, but the inscription "aut", only the suburban train # 8028 Burgas - Yambol had track # 7. But I did not attach any importance to this, but in vain!
I decided to take a photo trip opposite the Burgas-Razpredelitelna station, for this I took a bus next to the Dolno Ezerovo quarter. I drove about 20 minutes by bus, I see parallel railway tracks and a marshalling yard. I get out at the nearest stop, move to the tracks. But as soon as I got to the railway line, a whistle was heard from the direction of Burgas. I wonder what it is? And then an electric train appeared from behind the bend.


Electric train 32-104.2. Although the light is backlit, the first train was filmed. I was even more pleased that the first trophy was an electric train built for BDZ by the Riga Carriage Works, known as ER25.


The electric train sped away, and I began to inspect the freight station. If work is constantly in full swing at our marshalling yards, the shunting diesel locomotive ChME3 or TEM2 constantly rearranges cars from one track to another, then silence reigned here. Not a diesel locomotive whistle, not a clatter ... Silence.


But looking closer, I noticed that most of the cars had rusted wheels, which indicated that they had been here for a long time. And the roll forward on the tracks was rather weak on most of the tracks.


I decided to walk along the paths. Now it is good to shoot trains to Burgas, but the surroundings of the tracks are overgrown so much that there is nowhere to stand about. Walking along the tracks, I glance at the cargo station, trying to notice at least some signs of life. So I got to the station building of the Burgas-Distribution station.


Station Burgas-Distribution (Gara Burgas-Distribution). The landing platform of the stopping point of the same name (bulg: spirka) is also located nearby. The tracks of the truck fleet adjoin the main ones in a couple of kilometers, it is in that place that the entrance traffic light and the sign "Border to garata" (Border of the station) are located.


Continuing the walk I approach the traffic lights. The traffic light is yellow, the station is closed for passage. Although, judging by the timetable, there should be a train. The train appeared, of course, but from the opposite side. A series 44 electric locomotive made by Skoda rushed to Burgas with a pair of passenger cars. If you look closely, you can see the signs of the current divide in the distance. The electric locomotive proceeded along this section with the pantograph lowered. Neutral insert, gentlemen.
Since the next train from Burgas was expected only in 40 minutes, I decided to walk to the place where the border of the station passes.


Entrance traffic lights and station border sign.
Initially, I wanted to go even further, but changed my mind. The terrain was unfamiliar to me, moreover, the railway turned left, where the lighting for shooting trains from Burgas was unsuccessful. Let's go back.


View in the direction of Burgas, in the direction of the station Vladimir Pavlov.


I'm going back. When I reach the traffic light, I look at the reading - nothing has changed, it still burns yellow.

In general, the traffic light was a little embarrassed why it is only two-digit. Is there a semi-automatic blocking here? To be honest, it was hard to believe in it. Like European country, like a two-track, and the line is clearly not inactive. But then the yellow traffic light changed to green. I took a position, a minute later the muzzle of a Skoda electric locomotive appeared in the distance.


So, an electric locomotive with a pair of cars follows as a suburban one. The one that I saw a little over an hour ago. By the way, the electric train that I took first by this time had already returned back to Burgas. But now all the attention is on the suburban train # 8028.


Electric locomotive 44-094.1 with suburban train No. 8028 Burgas - Yambol, section Vladimir Pavlov - Burgas-Razpredelitelna. As soon as the suburban passed, I quickly walked forward in order to see the traffic light. The traffic light was green. The suburban train disappeared around the bend, following the entrance traffic light, and the green signal changed to yellow. There is no doubt that it is semi-automatic.
The train sped away, the next one was expected soon, but ... I didn’t attach any importance to the fact that instead of the track number there was an inscription "aut" on the board (the bus is obvious). Fifteen minutes passed, but the warning light was yellow. In the meantime, a freight train arrived at the freight depot - the station revived a little. I already wanted to look at the arriving train, but then the warning light turned green, and a couple of minutes later an unknown locomotive of dark color appeared in the distance. As we approached, it became clear that a freight train driven by a Series 87 locomotive was approaching.


Electric locomotive 87-033.7 with a freight train. The owner of the locomotive is Bulgarska Zhelezopatna Company. The 87 series electric locomotives were purchased by this railway company from the British, previously operated in England. This locomotive was built in 1974.
A little more time passed, and the green light came on again at the warning light. The yellow muzzle of an electric locomotive with a freight train appeared on the horizon. But as we got closer, it became clear that the freight system was headed by a system of two electric locomotives.


Electric locomotives 92-025.1 "Oscar Wilde" and 92-034.3 "Kipling" with a freight train. I wonder whose locomotives are these? On the sides of the electric locomotives are the logo "EWS" (English, Welsh and Scottish Railway Ltd) of the largest British railway company. And on the face is the logo of DB (Deutsche Bahn) of a large company, the main railway operator in Germany. And the locomotives themselves travel along the Bulgarian railways. Interesting movie!
On this I decided to end my acquaintance with the railways of Bulgaria, but only for a while. The fact is that after a couple of days I had to come to Burgas to buy some things that I did not find in Pomorie, the camera was with me. And then I decided to shoot a suburban one again to Yambol, but a little further - on the territory of the Dolno Ezerovo quarter. I took a bus to this quarter of Burgas, reached the tracks and after 10 minutes successfully took off a suburban train.


Electric locomotive 44-134.5 with suburban train No. 8028 Burgas - Yambol, the Burgas-Razpredelitelna - Dolno Ezerovo section.
After filming the commuter train, I decided to wait a bit, hoping for freight trains, but there were no freight trains that day. More precisely, there was one cargo, but it passed already when I was returning back to the city.
In principle, this was enough for me, but ... I liked the Bulgarian Skoda electric locomotives, after all, they have a slight external resemblance to our ChS2. God, as you know, loves the Trinity, and therefore I decided to come to this section again in order to film another Czech. The trip took place on 15 August.


I went to the section 20 minutes before the commuter train. At the warning traffic light, the usual yellow was on, nothing was expected in front of the suburban. On the last train, I saw a notch in the curve ahead, so I decided to go forward.


But when I reached the curve, I realized that the plan to remove the suburban from the recess could be discarded - the recess was all in the bushes, there was nowhere to stand. It's a pity of course, but what to do. Not salty I go back. About 10 minutes passed, and then the noise of a suburban train approaching was heard. I knew there would be an electric locomotive 44-096.6 because I saw it at the Burgas station


Suburban appeared in the curve. I pointed the camera, but then the technique failed by focusing inaccurately, correcting the inaccuracy only when the electric locomotive almost left the frame.


Electric locomotive 44-096.1 with suburban train Burgas - Yambol. I was not very happy with the shot, but on the other hand, I have not yet shot a close-up of the Bulgarian Czechs. The train followed the yellow flashing warning light and disappeared around the bend.
Now all that was left was to wait and hope for luck. But an hour passed, and there was no movement. Only in the sky flocks of pelicans constantly circled.


A flock of pelicans flying to the Burgas lake.
After walking a little more along the tracks, I decided to leave. I left the railway, but when I got to the bus stop I found out that the bus had just left, and here they only run every 45 minutes. Well, since it happened, I decided to go to the Dolno Ezerovo station and see what kind of station it was. Since the station was located in the quarter itself, I did not have to walk for a long time and, having turned onto one street, I saw a crossing 150 meters away.


Station (Gara) Dolno Ezerovo. Taking a look at the station, I realized why the train arrived at the station under two yellow signals of the entrance traffic light - the 1st and 2nd main tracks were closed for repairs, the trains were moving through the side tracks. Track 2 has been completely dismantled, a new track has already been laid in place of the dismantled track 1, but it is still far from commissioning. A similar picture is observed at the Vladimir Pavlov station.


Railway crossing at the Dolno Ezerovo station. As soon as I made a frame of the crossing, the alarm went off and the barrier closed. A train is expected only from which side, in addition, a single-track line to the metallurgical plant departs from the Dolno Ezerovo station. But when I got out to the crossing, I noticed a green signal at one of the repeating traffic lights - the train is expected from Burgas.


And in front of the station there is a curve, here only a suburban with two cars is well removed. And from behind the curve appeared the already familiar pair of electric locomotives bearing the names of Oscar Wilde and Rudyard Kipling.


Series 92 electric locomotives with a freight train. In general, freight trains in Bulgaria are not that long, but under some, nevertheless, they put systems of 2 electric locomotives.


Bulgarian freight cars. The freight train slid onto a side track and was soon out of sight. A few minutes later the crossing rang again. Only this time the train was already on the opposite side, and it was the already familiar locomotive 44-096.1, which was returning with a commuter train from Yambol. But then I remembered that from minute to minute there will be a suburban train №8014 Burgas - Sliven, and judging by previous observations, an electric train of the ER25 series, aka 32-104.2, will go as a commuter train. Fine! A few minutes later, when a suburban from Yambol dashed off to Burgas, the crossing rang again, and a beautiful Riga woman appeared from around the corner.


Electric train 32-104.2 on the route Burgas - Sliven. Fine! If you have a question how I knew what this particular electric train would be, I am answering, at the present time it works alone here. There is really one more electric train in Burgas, but it stands at a dead end without movement. Great result, but now you can go to the bus? Perhaps! I go to the bus stop, reaching which I find out that the next flight will be soon, but .... Something made me miss this flight and go back to the railroad tracks. The crossing rang when I was about 50 meters away from it. I'm running ahead, although it's not a fact that the train will be from Burgas. And as it turned out, the train was on the opposite side, but ... An electric locomotive was following to Burgas in reserve, which made it possible to remove it for those leaving for the haul.


Another addition to the collection is the 86 series electric locomotive, which, judging by the logo on the face, also belongs to the Germans.
After the passage of this electric locomotive, there was a slight lull, which I took advantage of while walking around the station.


Dolno Ezerovo station. In front of us is the building of the railway station, as well as the landing platform. The station is undergoing repair work to replace the railway track.


View towards the station Burgas-Razprazditelnaya.
The station was filmed, but what will happen next. And then I remembered that today is Saturday, which means there should be a train from Burgas to Budapest. I look at my watch - in a couple of minutes the train will leave Burgas, which means there is little time. Only here at the station I did not want to shoot against the background of the construction site, but I simply do not have time to get to the Dolno Ezerovo - Druzhba section, and even this is already outside the block - the places are not familiar.
I had to shoot near the crossing, like the previous trains.


Electric locomotive 45-176.5 with passenger train 1470 Burgas - Budapest-Keleti. So the Czech of the 45th series got caught.
The passenger train sped away, but a few minutes later the crossing rang again, and a whistle was heard from the direction of Burgas.


The familiar electric locomotive 44-096.6 with empty passenger cars passed by. In general, a suburban train Burgas - Karnobat should be behind the passenger train, but it turned out that this train does not run on Saturdays.
On this I decided to complete the photo excursion. Returning to the bus stop, I waited for the bus and drove back to the center of Burgas. Then transfer to the bus to Pomorie and after 20.00 I was already at home.
The sun was already hidden behind the horizon when I went to the beach. And even though it was getting dark, I plunged into the warm waters of the Black Sea and got great pleasure from swimming at sunset. The day was a success!
As for the general impression of the BDZ rolling stock, I personally liked the local Skoda electric locomotives and the ER25 series electric train. Everything else is certainly not bad, but ours is prettier anyway. That's all! Thank you for your attention!

Railways in Bulgaria serviced by a government company BDZ - Български дърговани Зирговни жизни... The site is available in English.

Railway transport in Bulgaria is inferior to bus transport in some cases: railways do not cover all the cities of the country. In addition, such a trip takes a longer time. At the same time, it is worth noting that rail travel is relatively inexpensive.

Railway stations

Central Gara is Sofia's main passenger station. It is located near the city center in close proximity to the central bus station of Sofia. Most of the international railway trains arrive and depart from here: Sofia has a direct international connection with Belgrade, Bucharest, Budapest, Vienna, Athens.

Train types in Bulgaria

• "Expressen vlak" - express trains (lines Sofia-Plovdiv, Sofia-Varna, Sofia-Burgas)
• "Burs vlak" - local "fast" trains
• "Ptnici" - passenger trains

Daily passenger traffic is carried out in the following directions

• Sofia - Blagoevgrad - Kulata;
• Sofia - Mezdra - Mikhailovgrad - Vidin;
• Sofia - Plovdiv - Dimitrovgrad - Svilengrad;
• Sofia - Karlovo - Sliven - Burgas;
• Sofia - Plevna - Horn;
• Oryahovitsa - Shumen - Varna;
• Sofia - Plevna - Ruse;

Ticket prices for some destinations

• Sofia - Plovdiv, ticket price - 8 lev (2nd class), 10 lev (1st class), travel time - 2 hours 40 minutes, distance 160 km
• Sofia - Varna, ticket price - 23.5 lev (2nd class), 30 lev (1st class), travel time - 8 hours, distance 540 km
• Sofia - Burgas, ticket price - 19 lev (2nd class), 23.5 lev (1st class), travel time - 6 hours 40 minutes, distance 450 km

Ticket discounts

• Children under the age of 7 travel free if accompanied by an adult;
• When buying a round-trip ticket, a 10% discount (while children aged 7 to 10 receive another 50% discount);
• For groups of 3 to 6 people, when buying a one-way ticket, a 15% discount;
• 25% discount for youth and classic pass holders;
• 50% discount for frequently traveling BJ clients;
• Students under the age of 26 traveling in an organized group receive a 75% discount;

InterRail pass in Bulgaria

Travel card InterRail Bulgaria Rail Pass valid for 3,4,6 or 8 days. Available for sale only to tourists who are not citizens of the country. The cost of a youth pass for 3 days in 2nd class is 36 euros, for 8 days - 82 euros.

Bulgarian State Railways Holding

original name	Holding Balgarski d'rzhavni zheleznitsi
	Balgarski darzhavni zheleznitsi Holding
	State corporation
Industry	Transport
founded	1885
Headquarters	,
Service area	Bulgaria
Key people	George Drumev
Services	Passenger and cargo transportation
Amount of workers	17867
Web site	www.bdz.bg

Bulgarian State Railways

Bulgarian railway network map
scene	Bulgaria
Terms of the operation	1885-
Track width	1,435 mm (4 ft - 1 / 2 v) standard gauge
Electrification	25 KV AC, 50 Hz OHLE
length	4,070 km (2,529.0 miles) (as of December 31, 2012)

V Bulgarian State Railways(Bulgarian: Български дърговани Зирговни жизни , Balgarski darzhavni zheleznitsi, abbreviated as BJ, BJD and or BJD) are Bulgaria's state-owned railway company and the largest railway carrier in the country, established as a legal entity in 1885. The company's headquarters are located in the capital Sofia. Since the 1990s, Belarusian Railways has faced serious competition from road transport. Between 1994 and 2010, there has been a significant decline in market share in passenger and freight transport, and the lack of good governance makes the situation worse. Until 2002, the company owned / operated the railway infrastructure in the country, when in accordance with EU regulations the new state-owned company, the National Railway Infrastructure Company, was founded and became the owner of the infrastructure.

On January 1, 2002, a new law on railway transport enteredrd into force, adopted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, according to which the National Company of the Bulgarian State Railways Werr was divided into two separate enterprises - the railway carrier (Bulgarian State Railways EAD) and the infrastructure enterprise ( Railway Infrastructure National Company)

The European Commission formally warned Bulgaria in May 2010 for failing to comply with the first rail regulation on rail access charges. In October 2010, further restructuring of WSS announced, with BZD EAD becomes a holding company, and all rolling stock is spun off to light and freight subsidiaries.

The structure of the company

Since the last reforms in 2007, a new organizational structure has been approved.

BZD Inc. (holding company with one shareholder, Republic of Bulgaria)

• BJD Putnicheski PRAVOZI Ltd. - responsibility for passenger transportation. The company carried 31.36 million passengers in 2009.
• BJD Tovární PRAVOZI Ltd. - Freight operations and expeditions with additional BDZ expedited by Ltd. The company carried 13.3 million tons of cargo in 2009 at 3.1 million ton-kilometers. Privatization was undertaken in 2012 but was withdrawn in 2013 due to financial problems.
• BJD Traktzionen Podvizhen Sustav Ltd. - locomotive of management and service.
• BDZ-Konchar Inc. - a joint venture between BZDAMI EAD and KONČAR a group from Croatia with the bulk of the work of locomotive repair and modernization.

Nevertheless, there are many problems with the organizational structure of the holding. In order to optimize operating costs, many administration staff must be fired. There is an obvious lack of efficiency in management and the main goal of the Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Telecommunications is to make the enterprise profitable.

thrust current

Class	manufacturer	Traction type	Notes
	Electroputere - Craiova	Diesel-electric
	Luhanskteplovoz	Diesel-electric	Lyudmila (locomotive) The most famous locomotives built in the Soviet Union. Same as DB class 232
	Siemens AG	DMU -2	DESIRO Modern diesel-hydraulic multiple-units.
	Siemens AG	EMU-3	Desiro Modern 3 Vehicle Electric Train
	Siemens AG	EMU-4	Desiro version 4 of a class 30 car
	RVR Riga	EMU-4	Soviet built emu. Soviet class ER25 (ER25)
	RVR Riga	EMU-4	Soviet built emu. Soviet class ER33 (ER33)
42,1	Škoda Works	electric
	Škoda Works	electric
	Škoda Works	electric	Same as Class 43, but with electro-dynamic braking.
	Škoda Works	electric	Same class 44. Re debugged at 110 km / h operation for freight trains.
46 / 46.2	Electroputere - Craiova	electric	The LE5100 is the most powerful locomotive in use on the Belarusian Railways. Same as CFR class 40.
	Ganz	diesel	Similar to ZS class 641 and MAV class M44.
	VEB Locomotive und Electrotechnische Werke	Diesel-hydraulic	DB class V 60.
	Faur	Diesel-hydraulic	The largest number of locomotives in the Belarusian Railways fleet.
	Škoda Works	electric	Shunting and light replacement maintenance. Known among railfans in Bulgaria due to the rarity (~ 20 units) of the locomotive.
	Humboldt-Deutzmotoren AG	Diesel-hydraulic	Sofia Depot has one class locomotive that was supposed to be restored for shunting works at the depot, but the work was stopped due to lack of funding. DR Class V20.
	Henschel & Son	Diesel-hydraulic	760 mm (2 ft. 5 15 / 16 c) gauge locomotives used on Septemvri - Dobrinisthe tourist attraction line.
	Faur	Diesel-hydraulic	760 mm (2 ft. - 15 / 16 c) gauge locomotive.
	Kambara machine-building plant (Kambarka Engineering Works)	Diesel-hydraulic	760 mm (2 ft. - 15 / 16 c) calibration shunting locomotive. Soviet class TU7 (TU7)

Narrow gauge railways

The picturesque Septemvri-Dobrinishte narrow gauge line was completed in 1945 and runs through Avramov station, which is the highest railway station in the Balkans at 1267.4 meters. Then it passes through the summer and winter tourist center of Bansko. The line is 760mm caliber, non-electrified, and primarily serves diesel-powered locomotive power plants, however there are well-preserved steam locomotives that make the tour attractive. Although very attractive to tourists, it is also widely used. local residents for public transport purposes.