Northern Speed Tangent (Sofia)

Northern Bypass Highway
Северна скоростна тангента
Northern Speed Tangent highlighted in red and yellow
Route information
Part of E79 E80 E871
Length:	16.5 km (10.3 mi)
Major junctions
Beltway around northern Sofia
Highway system
Transport in Bulgaria

Northern Bypass Highway (Bulgarian: Северна скоростна тангента, Severna Skorostna Tangenta) or Sofia Northern Speed Tangent is a ^{[nb 1]} dual carriageway, grade separated road with controlled-access, designed for high speeds. The bypass has three traffic lanes and an emergency lane in each carriageway. It bypasses the Bulgarian capital Sofia from north with the purpose to carry the transit traffic, which otherwise has to pass through the city or via the Sofia ring road.

The bypass is an important thoroughfare, as it connects four motorways - A1 Trakia motorway (via the Sofia ring road), A2 Hemus motorway, the future Kalotina motorway and A6 Lyulin motorway. Also, it connects 3 Pan-European corridors - IV, VIII and X.

Construction

In 2012, a tender for construction was announced.^[1] Construction works were expected to begin in 2013,^[2][3] but due to litigation the contract for design and build was signed in February 2014.^[4] The term for implementation of the contract is 18 months. Due to land expropriation issues,^[5] the construction works started in February 2015.^[6]

The first 13 kilometers of the motorway were opened in the end of 2015^[7] and the remaining segment was inaugurated on 28 April 2016.^[8]

Exits

Exit	km	Destinations	Notes	Lanes
	0	Sofia ring road (and )	In service
		Rozhen blvd.	In service
		Iliyantsi blvd.	In service
		Chepinsko shose str.	In service
		East tangent, Sofia Airport	In service
	16.5	, Sofia ring road (and )	In service

Notes

1. Still not designated as of January 2015.

References

1. "Eleven Tenders Were Opened for the Design and Construction of the North-Speed Tangent". api.government.bg. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
2. "400 M leva needed for two roads near Sofia". monitor (in Bulgarian). 6 March 2013.
3. "Only 4 price bids opened in the tender for Northern tangent". infrastructure.bg (in Bulgarian). 12 March 2013.
4. "Започва проектирането и строителството на Северната скоростна тангента". vestnikstroitel.bg. 17 February 2014.
5. "АПИ преговаря за отчуждаването на имоти за Северната скоростна тангента" (in Bulgarian). infrastructure.bg. 6 January 2015.
6. "The Construction of North Speed Tangent Starts up". RIA. 18 February 2015.
7. "Пуснаха движението по 13-километров участък от Северната скоростна тангента" (in Bulgarian). infrastructure.bg. 30 December 2015.
8. "Изцяло е пусната за движение Северната скоростна тангента" (in Bulgarian). API. 28 April 2016.