The Tutrakan Municipal Council has authorised the mayor to launch a public procurement procedure for passenger transport services on the key Tutrakan–Varna route.
The service can be awarded either under the Concessions Act or the Public Procurement Act. For the past year, however, the route has been operated under an “emergency measure”.
An emergency measure for bus transport is a mechanism for direct award under a 2007 European Community regulation. It may be used once for a period of up to two years to prevent the interruption of public transport services when there is a risk that transport links could be suspended.
Under this procedure, the mayor or regional governor may issue an order or decision to launch the measure when it is necessary to protect the public interest and ensure continuity of transport services.
A decision to apply an emergency measure to the Tutrakan–Varna route was taken by the Silistra regional governor at the end of June 2025. At the end of July, Tutrakan Municipality signed a contract with the local bus operator T.A.T. Ltd. The agreement was for one calendar year, starting on 24 July 2025.
The new decision by the Tutrakan Municipal Council is intended to return to a competitive procedure for selecting an operator under the Public Procurement Act.
But can genuine competition be ensured?
Formally, the procedure is open to individuals and legal entities registered as traders, as well as consortia, provided they hold a licence to transport passengers in Bulgaria or a Community licence and all other documents required under the Road Transport Act, its implementing regulations and the Public Procurement Act.
In reality, however, the next operator of the route is likely to be the same company that has been providing the service under the emergency measure – T.A.T. Ltd.
The reason is that the company is effectively a monopolist in passenger transport services in the area, with few or no realistic competitors.
This became particularly clear during a dispute between Tutrakan Municipality and the carrier in 2025.
As “Za Istinata” reported, the municipality initiated the seizure of the company’s bank accounts by private enforcement agents over unpaid obligations to the municipality. The dispute was subsequently linked to a commercial case lost by the company concerning subsidies that had allegedly been paid improperly.
In response, the company notified the municipality that it would suspend its urban and intercity transport services, including the Tutrakan–Varna route.
The move threatened to disrupt transport for pupils from nearby villages travelling to schools in Tutrakan. Several key bus routes to surrounding villages and to the cities of Varna and Silistra were also at risk.
A serious transport crisis appeared imminent.
But following what the municipality described as an “open and constructive discussion”, and after the seizure of the company’s bank accounts was lifted, Tutrakan Municipality and T.A.T. reached a consensus allowing the carrier to continue providing transport services under its existing contracts.
A review of the public procurement registers shows that for years T.A.T. has been the only company appearing and winning contracts to provide passenger transport services for Tutrakan Municipality.
That makes it possible for the company to exert significant influence over the terms of the service.
The same situation could arise with the new public procurement procedure, which is expected to run for five years.
Subsidies make public transport attractive
One of the key incentives for companies operating public transport routes is access to state subsidies.
The funds are provided as targeted transfers from the central government budget to municipal budgets through the System for Electronic Budget Payments (SEBRA). Municipalities that comply with the legally established procedures for awarding public passenger transport contracts receive spending limits allowing them to access the transfers.
This makes securing a long-term contract particularly important for operators – and raises the question of whether the new procedure will actually produce competition, or simply formalise the position of the company that has dominated the route for years.
