"BDZ - Passenger Transport“ will increase the capacity of the busiest trains on the Black Sea coast routes during the summer season. Some of the trains on the Sofia - Varna and Sofia - Burgas lines will operate with additional carriages.
The company emphasizes that they monitor the train load daily and, in case of increased demand, as well as in the presence of free rolling stock, they will provide additional seats for travel.
In order to prevent overcrowding of the trains, ticket sales will be suspended after the available seats are exhausted. BDZ recommends that passengers purchase tickets early for the most popular summer destinations. Traditionally, the most people travel at the end of the working week, and places in sleeping cars are often sold out in the first days of pre-sale.
What part of the trains to the sea are equipped with air conditioning, according to Anatoly Atanasov – Director of “Operational Activities“ at BDZ?
“The air-conditioned cars with which we service the trains to and from the Black Sea coast are about 90%. We carry out preventive checks of the condition of the air-conditioning installations daily. Problems and any damage are reported in real time. Passengers are re-accommodated and at the terminal station the damage is repaired or, if this is impossible and requires more work, the carriages are taken out of service and replaced with others.“
- What has been done to fix the problems with the air conditioning of the German carriages, which last summer turned off the air conditioning system?
„We are carrying out emergency maintenance on 60 carriages and, in addition, we are replacing some control boards that control the air conditioning system and their replacement actually gives good results.“
The floors, windows, bathrooms and all frequently touched surfaces are cleaned daily. During downtime at the terminal stations, when the schedule allows, additional cleaning of the carriages is also carried out. A thorough cleaning of the rolling stock is also carried out every 28 days. In the period from May 1 to September 30, the upholstered seats in the railcars are also washed, as well as the carpeted floors in the carriages, where there are any, said Anatoly Atanasov.