Trakiya motorway

Infobox road
highway_name = Trakiya motorway
marker_

alternate_name = автомагистрала „Тракия“
length = planned: 443 km
built: 280 km
direction = west-east
starting_terminus = Kalotina (planned)
ending_terminus = Burgas (planned)
cities = Sofia, next to Pazardzhik, next to Plovdiv, next to Stara Zagora
(planned or in construction: Kalotina, next to Sliven, next to Yambol, Burgas)
established =
system =

The Trakiya motorway ( _bg. Aвтомагистрала „Тракия“, "Avtomagistrala "Trakiya") or Thrace motorway, designated A1, is a motorway currently in construction in Bulgaria. It is planned to connect the capital of Sofia with Burgas on the Black Sea through Plovdiv and with Kalotina on the Serbian border. The motorway is named after the historical region of Thrace, the northern (Bulgarian) part of which it runs through. The Trakiya motorway's projected length is 368 km (or 443 km depending on whether certain segments are included), of which 280 km are currently in operation as of October 2007 — linking Sofia to Stara Zagora, as well as Karnobat to Burgas.

The construction and future concession of the motorway has been the subject of much controversy in 2005 and 2006, as a contract with a Portuguese company was renegotiated. However in 2007 a final arrangement has been made by the local government to fully complete the motorway by 2010. [http://money.ibox.bg/news/id_1711851218] A toll fee is to be collected from all vehicles, which is to be determined by the government. For the first year of operation it will be around 0.025 euro/km.

The Maritza motorway (part of the Trakiya motorway) designated A3, which branches off from east of Plovdiv just west of Chirpan will run south east to the Turkish border but is not yet complete (11/2007). The EU agreed funding for the completion of this project in November 2007. [http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=87267] .Its construction runs in the same direction as an existing length of the E80. The E80 that runs near to the city of Parvomay is mainly only a two lane road and carries much of the road freight to and from Turkey. The completion of the A1 Trakiya Motorway will attempt reduce this congestion.

Recently the minister of transport said that the motorway will run through te northern tangent of the future Sofia ring-road.