暗网禁区

"1 - Are traffic rules strictly respected or enforced in Bulgaria?

NO! Speed limits, rules of the road, traffic lights, warning signs, one-way streets etc are purely optional here. It's fairly common for bus and truck drivers to have fake/no driving licences - this usually comes out AFTER they've been involved in RTAs. Traffic cops will still take "bungs" if you're worried about retaining your driving licence (see "points" in 2 below).

2 - Are there any unspoken rules, unexpected habits or regulations that you had to adapt to?

YES - SEE 1聽 ABOVE AND 3 & 4 BELOW 馃槑

Traffic laws do not apply to drivers of German "luxury" vehicles with blacked-out windows.

In addition, pedestrian crossings are often impromptu parking spaces; roundabouts and pedestrian crossings are also favoured sites for bus stops.

Bulgarian licences come with "points" - these are deducted for infringements: lose all your points and you'll lose your licence - not that anybody cares (see "bungs" under 1 above).

3 - Are the roads safe and well-maintained?

NO!

4 - Are there specific times of day, weather conditions, or seasons that make driving more dangerous?

NO! There are drunks, druggies and maniacs in poorly maintained/totally unroadworthy vehicles on the roads at all times of the day and night.

YES! The roads are covered with snow and ice in the winter, but those conditions are invisible to the aforementioned drunks, druggies and maniacs.

After a few years you no longer even notice how crazy and chaotic it all is....馃榿

@JimJ, sounds as if you haven't driven in the UK recently!

Apart from the bungs, which probably also happen here, you could be describing roads and drivers in our "nice" UK market town. Certainly far more drugged drivers here, and speed limits are treated as minimum speeds, not maximumsm

@janemulberry

Sorry, @janemulberry, it's possible that you live in a pocket of the UK that rivals Bulgarian drivers... but more likely that you haven't driven much in Bulgaria! :-)

The UK is an oasis of well-regulated driving in comparison, including such first-world luxuries as automated checks for MOT, insurance and tax... plentiful automatic cameras... and a system of driving license penalties that is very effective in getting most folks to moderate their driving.

@JimJ

Funny/scary post. :-)

And, mostly I agree with you. I found Bulgaria pretty terrifying for a few days when I first drove over the border from Serbia!

Now, not only do I barely notice, I (sadly) now drive almost as demonically as the locals. Indeed, I rather enjoy the luxury of driving like a teenage hooligan and rarely getting a ticket (and even when I do, it's a trivial fine and no points).

Things are definitely tightening up, and I see more traffic police, more parking enforcement, and more cameras. This is a good thing, and hopefully they will get the funds to do more. I do actually look forward to the day when I'm forced to drive as if I were in the UK.

There is still no automatic checking of MOT and insurance (but there is of road tax/vignette). This contributes to more unroadworthy vehicles... especially all those foreign plated vehicles that obviously arrived years ago, and probably don't have either MOT or insurance.

Also, we should point out this isn't just anecdotal. Bulgaria's traffic mortality rate (per capita) is the highest in the EU... in a sparsely populated country with (in comparison to the UK, say) wide open roads with few folks to crash into. :-)

It's a bit tricky going sans insurance and MOT these days - it's an offence not to display the stickers on your windscreen and the first thing that Plodski checks when they stop you for their annoyingly frequent roadside checks.

Just as annoying is the check for the age of your LPG tank if you have a dual-fuel vehicle; you have to change them every 10 years. You're also required to display an LPG sticker inside your rear window but the law doesn't preclude you from sticking it on top of any tinting, which makes it invisible from the outside....馃槑

@janemulberry

I'd say that you perhaps haven't driven/been driven much in Sofia 馃榿 The driving standards in the UK certainly aren't what they were but here in The Smoke they're infinitely worse!