January 13 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria and Turkey have agreed to try to increase cross-border railway traffic to 24 trains per day in 2023 from an average of 14 trains per day last year, a spokesperson for Bulgaria's National Railway Infrastructure Company told SeeNews on Friday.
The agreement was made in the context of plans by some Bulgarian railway carriers to increase the volume of goods transported by rail, the spokesperson told SeeNews in an emailed statement.
Transport ministers from both countries are scheduled to meet soon to sign a memorandum of understanding with more specific terms of action, she added.
According to the statement, total cross-border freight traffic between Svilengrad, in Bulgaria and Kapikule, in Turkey increased to 5,135 trains in 2022 from 5,034 in 2021 and 4,124 in 2020.
Bulgaria is working on expanding the Lesovo border checkpoint with Turkey. The countries are also working to speed up customs checks on the railway line and to accelerate cross-border logistics activities.