Traffic has been restored on the I-1 Mezdra - Botevgrad road in the Kopianovets region. The road was briefly closed due to a broken-down TIR, announced the "Road Infrastructure" Agency. (API), quoted by Dariknews.bg.
The vehicles had to use a detour route: road III-161 Rebarkovo - Rashkovo - Litakovo - Botevgrad.
Heavy-duty vehicles over 12 tons were waiting on site, and traffic was regulated by the "Traffic Police".
The road surfaces are mostly wet, partially icy in the muddy places, passable in winter conditions, the RIA reported earlier this morning, quoted by BTA. Light snow is falling in the districts of Veliko Tarnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Gabrovo, Razgrad, Ruse, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pleven, Silistra and the areas of Predel Pass, Popovi Livadi, Cherna Mesta (Blagoevgrad region), Petrohan Pass, Etropole, Vitinya, Pirdop (Sofia region), Preval, Pamporov, Rozhen Passes (Smolyan region), Shipka Pass (Gabrovo region, Stara Zagora region).
All roads in Ruse are passable in winter conditions, in one village there are registered problems with the power supply. A total of 23 machines are clearing the snowfall to ensure safe travel for drivers in the region. This was announced by the deputy regional governor of Ruse, Georgi Georgiev.
The Hydrometeorological Station in the Danube city reported to BTA that the snow cover is about 1 cm. A northeasterly pulsating wind with a speed of up to 20 meters per second has been recorded. The air temperature is minus 0.8 degrees.
The regional administration recalled that a yellow code has been declared today for heavy snowfall and strong wind in the region.
Georgi Georgiev specified that anti-icing treatment is being carried out on all routes of the republican roads, which in the region are just over 500 kilometers long. All available specialized equipment is on standby and in case of deterioration of the meteorological situation, it can react as quickly and adequately as possible, Georgiev also announced. According to him, the required number of snow removal machines were deployed throughout the night and, accordingly, the republican roads were processed in a timely manner.
Georgiev appealed to drivers who have a trip ahead of them to set off with cars prepared for winter conditions, to drive at a reasonable speed and not to undertake risky maneuvers. There are no problems when crossing the Danube Bridge near Ruse – Giurgiu, the regional administration specified.
At this stage, there is no information about serious problems with the power supply. Only in the village of Brestovitsa, Borovo municipality, was a power outage detected at around 4:30 this morning. Measures are being taken to resolve the situation as quickly as possible, the regional administration in Ruse also noted. There is no information about settlements without water and telecommunications. The situation is variable, but is being constantly monitored.
At the passes “Shipka“ and "The Republic Pass" is snowing. The road surface is covered with snow and is being processed. This was reported to BTA by the officer on duty at the Regional Road Administration (RDA) in Stara Zagora.
He added that it is raining more intensely at the Hainboaz Pass, and the temperature is minus two degrees. On the other Stara Planina Pass, it is a little colder and the temperature is minus three degrees.
Two snow-clearing machines are working on both passes, which connect northern and southern Bulgaria in the Stara Zagora region.
The road surfaces of the two highways "Trakia" and "Maritsa" in Stara Zagora district are wet, as are a large part of the road arteries in the district.
No additional traffic restrictions have been introduced.
It is snowing lightly in most municipalities of Montana district, 43 machines are cleaning the roads in the region, and they are passable in winter conditions, the officer on duty at the Montana District Road Department told BTA.
In the plain part of the region, the snow cover is 2-3 centimeters, and in the mountainous part - a little more. In the Petrohan pass in the Stara Planina Mountains, through which the shortest road from Sofia to the Montana and Vidin districts passes, four machines are working. The road has been cleared and is passable, subject to weather conditions.
Temperatures in the region last night ranged from minus 3 degrees in the higher parts to zero, currently they are around zero in most places.
Due to a technical failure in a heavy-duty truck, traffic on the Lom-Kozloduy road in the area of the village of Kovachitsa in the Lom municipality was disrupted for several hours this morning. The truck has already been moved and the road has been cleared, the officer on duty specified.
During the night, anti-icing mixtures were applied in the areas of “Pancharevo“, the village of Zheleznitsa and the village of Plana. The roads in the “Vitosha“ Nature Park – Dragalevtsi - Aleko and Boyana - Zlatni mostove were also sanded, the Sofia Municipality announced.
If necessary, the roads in the “Vitosha“ Park
will be closed to traffic for sanding, after which traffic will be restored. The situation in the city is normal, and traffic is carried out in winter conditions.
The Municipality also added that the treatment with anti-icing mixtures continues on roads used by mass public transport in the areas of „Bankya“, „Ovcha Kupel“, „Vitosha“ and „Pancharevo“, as well as municipal roads in Pancharevo. Treatment of dangerous and steep sections in the capital has begun.
According to the weather forecast of the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, the minimum temperatures in most places today will be between minus 1° and 4°. During the day, the cold snap will continue and temperatures by 2:00 p.m. will be from minus 4° in the northwestern regions to 5°-7° in the southeastern ones. For Sofia, the temperature will have a slight daily range from zero to 2°.