During the Christmas and New Year holidays, traffic restrictions will be imposed on trucks over 12 tonnes during peak hours on the Trakia, Struma, and Hemus motorways

The Road Infrastructure Agency urges drivers to drive carefully and at an reasonable speeds

During the Christmas and New Year holidays, on certain days and at certain times, there will be temporary restrictions on the movement of trucks over 12 tonnes on the Trakia and Struma motorways along their entire length, and on the Hemus motorway between Sofia and the Dermanci road junction in the Sofia and Lovech regions. The aim is to facilitate the movement of passenger cars, increase traffic flow and improve road safety whenever large numbers of people are travelling. The introduction of temporary traffic management is necessary due to increased traffic, when the prerequisites for incidents are also greater due to improper overtaking and the formation of lines of heavy duty vehicles.

• On December 23 and 30, traffic of heavy-duty trucks will be suspended between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., with the restriction applying to vehicles leaving Sofia.
• On the last public holiday of the new year – January 4, 2026 – the ban on vehicles over 12 tonnes will be in effect between 12 noon and 8 p.m. and will apply to vehicles traveling to Sofia.

            The restriction does not apply to vehicles performing public transportation of passengers.

            On Hemus motorway and Struma motorway, the ban does not cover vehicles over 12 tonnes transporting dangerous goods (ADR), live animals, perishable food products and temperature-controlled cargo and specialized carcass trucks.

            On the Trakia motorway, in the section from the Ihtiman road junction /at km 34/ to the Vakareл road junction /at km 23/ in the direction of Sofia, the ban will not apply to vehicles over 12 tonnes carrying dangerous goods (ADR).

At the discretion of the drivers, during the change in the organization of traffic for the weekends, other national roads may be used as bypass routes, while respecting the permanent traffic organization in force for them. The introduction of the measure has been agreed with the Ministry of Interior, which may take additional measures to facilitate traffic flow and increase vehicle throughput.

The Road Infrastructure Agency urges drivers to drive carefully and at an reasonable speeds, to comply with traffic rules and refrain from making risky overtakes that endanger the safety of all other passengers. They should not use the emergency lanes on motorways for faster movement in heavy traffic, as it prevents the passage of special mode vehicles in the event of an accident.

All citizens and transport companies can receive information about the current traffic situation from the website of the Road Infrastructure Agency - www.api.bg, as well as at any time, 24 hours a day, at tel. 0700 130 20.