Sofia Metro Opens €145M Line 3 Extension in Bulgaria

SOFIA, BULGARIA – Metropoliten EAD opens a 3-kilometre eastern extension of Sofia Metro Line 3 on Friday, 14 August, introducing three underground stations beneath Gen. Vladimir Vazov Boulevard. Financed with BGN 284 million (€145 million) from Bulgaria’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the extension will serve an estimated 45,000 daily passengers and connects northeastern neighborhoods to the city center in 12 minutes. The opening expands municipal fleet operations with four additional Siemens trainsets entering revenue service.

What Is the Full Scope of This Project?

The Line 3 eastern extension adds 3 kilometres of underground track and three stations between Hadji Dimitar and the Levski district. The newly constructed stops comprise Georgi Asparuhov Stadium, Basarabia—recorded in some municipal planning documentation as Vitinia—and Gen. Vladimir Vazov. Infrastructure works also encompass intermodal facilities, featuring a 100-vehicle park-and-ride facility at Gen. Vladimir Vazov station, with municipal plans advancing for an adjacent 400-space structure. Four Siemens Inspiro trainsets have been commissioned to manage service intervals across the new segment, which began construction on 21 March 2022. The detailed civil works consortium contract allocations were not disclosed in municipal project records. The section forms part of a broader master plan aimed at expanding the network to 61 kilometres and 57 stations to capture 45 percent of Sofia’s urban modal share.

Key Project Data

How Does This Compare to Similar Projects?

Urban transit authorities globally are deploying targeted multi-station branch lines to connect outer residential districts with established metropolitan cores. In Australia, the state of Victoria is building standalone outer-suburban rail assets such as Tarneit railway station, scheduled to enter service in 2026 to handle outer-metropolitan population growth (Source: Victorian Auditor-General’s Office, 2025). In the United States, commuter systems are executing similar capacity expansions; the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District added two new stations and installed second platforms at three existing stations between Michigan City and Gary (Source: Railway Track and Structures, 2025). On a network scale, China reached 382 urban transit lines spanning over 13,000 kilometres across 58 cities by 2025 (Source: Li Xunlei Macro Research, 2025), while Copenhagen’s automated metro recorded an 8% passenger increase in 2025 as planning advanced on its M5 orbital expansion (Source: Railway PRO, 2025).

Editor’s Analysis

Sofia’s phased execution of Line 3 demonstrates effective deployment of post-pandemic recovery funding to build high-capacity electric transit in Eastern Europe without burdening local municipal budgets. By linking park-and-ride facilities directly to high-density residential tracts, Metropoliten EAD is establishing rapid transit as the primary mechanism to reverse roadway congestion along major corridors. This structural network buildout aligns with broader international trajectories where metropolitan rail systems are projected to grow at a 4.7% CAGR through 2036 (Source: Future Market Insights, 2025).

FAQ

Q: Which new stations are opening on Sofia Metro Line 3?
A: The expansion adds three stations: Georgi Asparuhov Stadium, Basarabia (also referenced as Vitinia in official planning records), and Gen. Vladimir Vazov. These underground stops link the Hadji Dimitar and Levski residential areas directly to central transfer stations.

Q: How much did the Sofia Metro Line 3 extension cost to construct?
A: The 3-kilometre capital project cost approximately BGN 284 million, which equates to €145 million. Financing was delivered through Bulgaria’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

Q: How many trains and passengers will the new Line 3 section accommodate?
A: Metropoliten EAD added four Siemens trains to handle an expected ridership increase of more than 45,000 passengers per day. Specific delivery schedules for future trainset procurement lots have not been officially confirmed.