When “Za Istinata” contacted a construction expert and sent them the public procurement for the renovation of the Ruse Freight Station railway stop, they advised us to check whether the 316-meter fence was gilded. The problem with the project is not only the apparently inflated prices, but it is also life-threatening.
Due to improper crossing at this location, several people have been killed or seriously injured by passing trains. The owner of the track, the National Railway Infrastructure Company, showed interest and found the resources to secure the line only two years ago. However, it was not done completely.
An investigation by “Za Istinata” found that the low-quality wire fence installed costs several times more than market prices and ends just after the platform, making it almost completely pointless. Beyond that, the track connecting the central station in the city and Ruse Distribution, along which dozens of passenger trains pass daily, remains unprotected.
The issue concerns an intermediate station in the central part of Ruse, near “Angel Kanchev” University. In 2022, the National Railway Infrastructure Company (NRIC) announced a public tender for a comprehensive renovation, which includes the construction of new platforms, shelters, video surveillance, and a protective fence around the station area.
The problems with the fence are twofold – it is expensive and ends abruptly.
For the complete renovation of the station, NRIC paid nearly 764,000 BGN excluding VAT, with the funding coming from the company’s capital transfer, i.e., from the State budget. In early 2023, the Dupnitsa-based company “Real Trading” LLC won the public tender for the project “Construction of platforms on both sides of the railway line at Tovarna Gara Ruse station.” According to the specifications, a protective fence should be installed for each platform, ideally providing “greater safety” and “preventing pedestrians from crossing the railway tracks.” The fence should be 153 meters for Platform 1 and 163 meters for Platform 2, totaling 316 meters.
According to one of the annexes (No. 3) to the price proposal for material unit prices, the cost of one meter of fence is 75.48 BGN. This brings the total to 23,851.68 BGN excluding VAT and without including delivery costs.
Several independent experts, contacted by “Za Istinata,” commented that these prices are several times higher than market rates. One of them even suggested that the fence might be “gold-plated.”
In practice, the installed protective structure is made of wire mesh. The quotes we received for a similar fence from two different commercial companies are around 2,200 BGN with VAT. The price does not include the concrete posts, which are placed every 1.5-2 meters. Each post costs between 15 and 20 BGN. However, even with these included, the total cost for 316 meters of fence does not exceed 7,000 BGN.
As seen in the photos, the protective barrier ends several hundred meters after the end of the platforms. Beyond that, the track remains unsecured, and crossing it freely and dangerously is entirely possible. The reason for this is a lack of sufficient funds, as explained by NKIŽ. According to the public procurement specifications, the fence was only planned to be installed around the station area.
“Since the funding for this project is specifically allocated for the area around the ‘Tovarna Gara Ruse’ railway station, it was deemed that 150 meters of fence would be sufficient to create a difficult-to-cross barrier to prevent unauthorized crossings by irresponsible citizens on the railway line,” responded the press center of the state-owned company, adding that if financial resources become available, the fence will be extended to the Central Railway Station in Ruse.
Over the years, several fatal incidents have occurred in the area, where people were struck by passing trains while crossing the tracks illegally. One of the latest incidents occurred in 2021, when a woman was seriously injured. In every such event, local media report that “the area is regularly used by people because it is convenient and they do not want to take a detour.” In 2018, a 13-year-old child lost their life while returning from school. Despite the presence of a pedestrian railway crossing in the area, people commonly choose to cross directly through the tracks. This continues to happen, as one of the paths is located immediately after the end of the fence.
The area around the railway tracks, as well as the tracks themselves, are owned by the National Railway Infrastructure Company (NRIC). The Municipality of Ruse has repeatedly signaled that the area should be secured by its owner. After the death of the 13-year-old child, the railway company installed a barrier just under 100 meters long. With this, the problem was formally addressed, but the incidents continued.
The newly installed fence at the end of last year is made of the so-called electric-welded mesh type. NRIC clarified that this choice was made “at the discretion of the designer” – that is, by the Dupnitsa-based company “Real Trading” Ltd.
According to sources of “Za istinata,” the material used is a cheaper option for fencing.
Typically, for large-scale railway infrastructure modernization projects, barriers or soundproof walls are built to completely block the railway line when it passes through populated areas. However, this is not seen as a solution in the Bulgarian context, according to NRIC, because “a major issue is the disregard for rules when crossing railway lines, despite the measures taken—’gates’ are made in soundproofing walls/fences for people to cross ‘directly through the tracks.'”
A few months after the completion of the renovation at the railway station in downtown Ruse, the wire fence already shows signs of attempts to cut it. Even if this doesn’t happen, as cameras for video surveillance have been installed at the platforms, citizens of Ruse continue to bypass the several hundred meters where the fencing ends and illegally cross the tracks, putting their lives at risk.
