The second bridge over the Danube at Ruse officially becomes a strategic priority for Bulgaria, according to the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications in Bulgaria Dimitar Nedyalkov. The project has already been given the green light to be fast-tracked, BalkanEngineer.com learnt from the minister's statement.

The facility is expected to seriously ease north-south traffic and improve transport links between Bulgaria and Romania, including military mobility. According to Nedyalkov, the project is already part of a key military and logistics corridor supported by the European Union and NATO. The new bridge will also be integrated into the future high-speed railway line between Greece, Bulgaria and Romania.
Romania has already started a feasibility study on its bank, and Bulgaria will follow with similar steps once a contractor is contracted. The cost of the study amounts to 14.46 million euro, of which 12 million will be contractual. Funding will be provided through the European Connecting Europe Facility (MCE), with additional private participation sought through concessions.
The new bridge - the third between the two countries - is expected to have a major economic impact, creating new jobs, facilitating trade and strengthening regional connectivity. Its realisation comes in the context of intensified efforts to build a sustainable and secure transport infrastructure in the region.

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