Half a million residents and guests of Sofia can now take advantage of the comfort, environmental friendliness and travel speed of the subway, after the expansion of the third line of the Bulgarian capital’s metro network was officially inaugurated today.

The 4 km long line consisting of 4 stations was officially opened at a ceremony in the presence of Minister of Transport, Information Technology and Communications Rosen Zhelyazkov, the Mayor of Sofia Yordanka Fandakova, the chairman of the Sofia Municipal Council Elen Gеrdzhikov, the executive director of Metropoliten EAD Prof. Dr. Stoyan Bratoev, the CEO of Siemens Mobility Bulgaria Eng. Kalin Ivanov, the CEO of Siemens EOOD Dr. Eng. Boriana Manolova, representatives of the contractors and guests.

As the first section of metro line 3, launched in the middle of last year, the new expansion will be served by state-of-the-art Inspiro trains and modern train control systems supplied by Siemens Mobility.

“The expansion of line 3 of the Sofia metro is another important step towards providing faster, more environmentally friendly and more convenient transport for the residents and guests of Sofia. It is also one of the milestones in the development of real intermodal transport in our capital. So we as a company that is among the leading global providers of innovative and integrated transport solutions, are especially proud to be part of this project ", said Kalin Ivanov, CEO of Siemens Mobility EOOD.

The Inspiro platform is designed with a special focus on low energy consumption, optimized maintenance, passenger comfort and environmental requirements. At the end of its service life, up to 95% of the rolling stock can be recycled.

The metro trains have a maximum operating speed of 80 km / h. Their floor is a weight-saving, sound-absorbent composite cork-aluminum plate. They also feature a highlyredundant traction and brake system (bogie-oriented), ensuring a high level of availability and electrodynamic braking almost down to standstill. 

The solutions provided by Siemens Mobility for 3rd metro line, include the automatic, CBTC-based train control system (onboard and wayside) Trainguard MT, the Trackguard interlocking, the automatic train supervision system Controlguide OCS, the voice radio and data transmission system, the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (Scada) system, the wayside digital communication network, and half-height platform screen doors for the stations.

The extension includes 4 underground metro stations. At Metro station 18 in Gorna Banya district a connection has been built to Pernik-Sofia railway, enhancing intermodality in passenger transportation  and enabling better integration of subway, road and rail. As a result, upon arrival in the capital, travelers from Pernik will be able to reach Sofia’s city center in 12 minutes.

The third metro line is served by a total of 30 Siemens Mobility’s Inspiro trains. With the launch of the second section of the third diameter, the entire length of the metro network in Sofia becomes 52 km. According to "Metropoliten" EAD, the three metro diameters with a total of 47 stations built so far are expected to serve over 500,000 passengers per day and will have over 40% share in the public transport system of Sofia.

Along with the convenience and speed, the third metro line will have a significant environmental effect, reducing by up to 25% the traffic in the areas where the subway operates and saving over 11,000 tons of harmful emissions per year.

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