ANALYSIS OF THE ROAD NETWORK IN BYALA MUNICIPALITY

General characteristics of the road infrastructure in Ruse district

The main road arteries of the national road network in Rousse District are fan-shaped and concentrated in and around the town of Rousse. The most important of them are first class road I-5 (E-85 Ruse-Veliko Tarnovo), first class road I-2 (E-70 Ruse-Varna), second class road II-21 (Ruse-Silistra), Kubrat) and third class road III-501 (Ruse-Dve mogili-Byala). All of them are entrance and exit in the Republic of Bulgaria through the Danube-Bridge border checkpoint. The total length of the national road network in Rousse District as of 31.12.2011 is 512 km, of which 110 km I class, 155 km II class and 247 km III class.
For the most part, the republican road infrastructure is in good operational condition. The busiest and with the largest number of road accidents is the first class road I-5 (E-85 Ruse – Veliko Tarnovo) in the section Ruse-Byala, which connects the directions Ruse-Sofia and Ruse-Svilengrad. In order to improve traffic safety on the first-class road I-5 (E-85 Ruse-Veliko Tarnovo) it is necessary to carry out design, reconstruction and construction of four lanes as soon as possible.
Municipal roads (former IV class) play an extremely important role in the socio-economic development at the local level. The total length of the municipal roads on the territory of Rousse District is 569.05 km, of which 450.7 km are former fourth-class and 118.35 km – local roads. The constructed municipal (fourth class) road network on the territory of Rousse District continues to be in unsatisfactory condition. The main part of the municipal roads has a permanent asphalt pavement, but in most cases only current repairs have been carried out on it. Asphalt pavements are worn due to the frequent use of roads by heavy agricultural machinery. Indicative is the fact that during the period the subsidies from the state budget for construction and overhaul of the municipal road network increase annually, but do not increase significantly and are only enough for partial patching and re-asphalting of small sections. Municipalities need additional funding and assistance from the state to fully solve the problems associated with re-asphalting of certain sections, installation of new vertical signs and horizontal markings, road signs and signs, repair of road facilities. It is of paramount importance for the future development of tourism in Rousse District to undertake the necessary repair works on the roads leading to cultural and historical sites and landmarks (Basarbovo Rock Monastery, Ivanovo Rock Churches, Red Fortress, Orlova Chuka Cave). Obviously, only with the funds allocated from the republican budget, the problems with the condition of the municipal road network cannot be solved. After 01.01.2007, in the conditions of the membership of the Republic of Bulgaria in the EU, new opportunities have been provided for financing projects for construction and reconstruction of municipal roads.
The majority of the municipalities indicate as priority roads of the 1st and 2nd category according to Decision of the Council of Ministers №236 / 13.04.2007. According to their data pre-investment (pre-project) studies and preparation of project proposals for construction and reconstruction have started on municipal roads under the Rural Development Program (measure 321 “Basic services for the population and the economy in rural areas”), with the exception of the Municipality of Rousse, which falls within the scope of urban agglomerations and is excluded from this program. Another opportunity is provided by OP CBC “Romania-Bulgaria” (Priority Axis 1 “Accessibility”), which implements projects for repair of municipal road network with cross-border effect. As an example, the Municipality of Rousse is implementing a project for a complete solution of the problems on Tutrakan Blvd. in the amount of EUR 7,859,392. The street network in the settlements of Rousse District is in relatively good condition in terms of construction, but not in terms of construction and technical parameters. In general, in cities it is better than in small settlements. Its length is many times longer than the length of the municipal road network and therefore it is understandable that its restoration and rehabilitation will be much longer (on average in the settlements its length varies from 15 to 40 km). Moreover, before the planned repairs are carried out, the projects for replacement of water pipes and laying of sewerage networks must be implemented. It is necessary to emphasize that the solution of the problems with the renewal of the appearance of the settlements is on the attention of the municipalities and is reported in their annual reports, but due to delays in opening the procedures for financing under the operational programs, a large part of the investment intentions as ideas without any visible result. The fact that the measures envisaged in the Rural Development Program related to the improvement of the infrastructure in the settlements started only at the end of 2008 cannot be ignored.

Characteristics of the road network in Byala municipality

The existing road network in Byala municipality consists of national and municipal road network. A first-class road I-5 / Ruse-Veliko Tarnovo-Podkova / passes through the territory of the municipality and in the immediate vicinity of the town of Byala – part of the European transport corridor №9. It allows for fast transportation of passengers and goods to the regional center-town. Ruse / within 30-40 minutes /, Borovo / 10-15 minutes /, Veliko Tarnovo / 50-60 minutes / and many other destinations. The flat terrain and the central location of the municipality favor the development of a dense road network. Byala Railway Station is located on the 4th railway line / Ruse-G. Oryahovitsa-Podkova /. Over 15 passenger, fast and international trains in the directions Ruse and Gorna Oryahovitsa pass through the station 24 hours a day.
The condition of the roads from the national road network, which pass through the territory of Byala municipality, is relatively good and is maintained by the Regional Road Administration. The total IV-class road network on the territory of the municipality is 42,400 meters long. The internal street network in the town of Byala is 48 km long, almost completely landscaped – filled with durable asphalt and concrete pavement. For the other settlements, with a length of the street network of 170 km, 130 km are landscaped. The main problem is the long service life without ongoing repairs for maintenance and the lack of funds to carry out the necessary repairs. The road surfaces of the streets of the primary street network were built more than 20 years ago. On many sections of these streets the pavements need a complete reconstruction. The available financial resources at this stage allow only patching activities to be carried out on particularly compromised sections of road surface. The condition of the pavements, which were built together with the streets, is similar. Nevertheless, the municipality of Byala is repairing and rehabilitating about 20 km. from the sidewalks on main streets of the city network in 2013. The Municipality of Byala has prepared an investment project for rehabilitation of the road surfaces on some of the main streets in the town of Byala, the village of Polsko Kosovo, the village of Botrov and the Byala railway station.
Transport infrastructure is crucial for regional development and a key factor for competitiveness. The distribution of the road network shows a low relative share of the motorway networks and the first-class roads in the country, which hinders the growth of the transit traffic and the interregional connections. The territorial distribution of high-ranking roads is crucial for the mobility of the population and transport accessibility to high quality services / health, educational, cultural, etc./. The connections between the municipal center – the town of Byala and the regional center – the town of Ruse are carried out on the international first-class road I-5 and on the railway. the line Ruse-Gorna Oryahovitsa-Sofia. Municipal roads are in satisfactory condition. In many places the asphalt pavement of the street network is worn to the base. This necessitates major repairs and re-asphalting of most of the streets.
In the town of Byala the street pavements are almost 100% built and have an asphalt cover. The condition of the pavements and sidewalks is poor due to wear, repeated excavation and poor restoration and unevenness on the roads and sidewalks. It is necessary to quickly reconstruct, overhaul and overhaul the street network, which is in poor condition.
The configuration of the road network is mostly radial, directed towards the municipal center. Municipal roads are built mainly with asphalt. Overall, the municipal road network is still in poor condition. The preventive and current maintenance of the municipal road network includes a complex of activities, construction and installation works, as long as the roads exist. It is necessary to carry out basic rehabilitation of municipal roads.
Within the scope of this project are visited the street sections in the municipality of Byala, provided for rehabilitation under the Program “Interreg VA Romania-Bulgaria 2014-2020”, to finance the project proposal “B-Ten – Improved nodes Giurgiu-Byala for better connection to TEN-T infrastructure ”and through visual observation and direct measurements (with laser roulette) are described the parameters of each of them – condition of the road surface, radii of intersections in the scope of rehabilitation, total and partial width of streets and lanes and width and condition of sidewalks and safety equipment.
The considered sections have an approximate total length of 4.8 km. Objects of the investment from the Bulgarian side are eight streets / sections of streets on the territory of the town of Byala, namely: STREET „R. DIMITRIEV ”, with a range – from Benkovska Street to Stefan Stambolov Street / road II-51 / with an approximate length of 350 m; STREET „M. PAPASCHIKOV ”, with a range – from San Stefano Street to Stefan Stambolov Street / road II-51 / with an approximate length of 750 m; 5TH OF OCTOBER STREET, with a scope – from Benkovska Street to Bunar Hisar Street for connection with road II-51 with an approximate length of 200 m; ILARION DRAGOSTINOV STREET, with a range – from Radko Dimitriev Street to Stefan Stambolov Street / road II-51 / with an approximate length of 450 m; 11th of December STREET, with a range – from Benkovska Street to Stefan Stambolov Street / road II-51 / with an approximate length of 1250 m; STREET „N. J. VAPTSAROV ”, with a range – from Vasil Aprilov Street to Alexander Stamboliyski Street with an approximate length of 350 m; ALEXANDER STAMBOLIYSKI STREET, with a range from Geo Milev Street to Nikola Petkov Street / road II-54 / with an approximate length of 1000 m (2 lanes x 500 m with a dividing strip); STREET „V. APRILOV ”, with a range – from Geo Milev Street to Nikola Petkov Street / road II-54 / with an approximate length of 450 m.