15 000 Visits Registered During the First Hour of www.bgtoll.bg

46 electronic vignettes were purchased only in the first hour of launching the specialized website www.bgtoll.bg of the National Toll Administration. The е-vignettes were made available for purchase through the website, the mobile application, and the self-service terminals in the commercial network from 14:00 today. Over 15 thousand visits on www.bgtoll.bg were registered in the first hour of its launching and nearly 400 paper stickers were converted into electronic vignettes.

The web site bgtoll.bg was presented at a press conference today at the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works by Anton Antonov – Director of the National Toll Administration, Engineer Veselin Davidov – Member of the Management Board of the Road Infrastructure Agency (RIA), and Prof. Oleg Asenov – Expert of RIA.

E-vignettes can be purchased on the web site www.bgtoll.bg, through the mobile application and the self-service terminals which are envisaged to be installed at the border checkpoints and the retail establishments. The available methods of payment are with credit and debit cards, and a bank transfer can also be used when purchasing an e-vignette on the website. When paying by bank transfer, however, a technological time of 1 – 2 days is required for this payment to be logged in the system, as is the case for all bank payments, noted Anton Antonov.

Prof. Oleg Asenov emphasized that before proceeding with purchasing an e-vignette the road user should already have taken a decision regarding three basic elements – what type of product does he/she want to buy depending on the period of its validity (weekend, weekly, quarterly, annual vignette), he/she should know the registration plate number of the motor vehicle, and should also decide on the way of planning his/her trip. The system allows an e-vignette to be activated no later than 30 days from purchasing it.

After selecting the state in which the motor vehicle is registered and for which the vignette is purchased, the user should enter its registration plate number and choose the validity period of the vignette. The system automatically calculates the expiry date of the vignette, noted Prof. Asenov.

Optionally, the user may choose to provide an e-mail address for receiving an acknowledgment of receipt. Printing out the vignette or keeping it in the car and presenting it to the control bodies is not required. After receiving the identification number of the transaction for purchasing a vignette, the user can either download a receipt or enter an e-mail address in order to receive it, then he/she can complete the vignette purchase process.

Within 5 minutes after the purchase of a vignette, the information above will be recorded in the system and each user can check whether the vignette is valid. The enforcement authorities can also check and see that the purchased e-vignette is valid, that it has not yet been used, and that it will be active starting on January 1, 2019.

The e-vignette is a state tax; if there is a wrong transaction or purchase of a vignette, the user should explain the situation by submitting a request in writing to all regional road administrations (RRAs). If the user holds a receipt for the purchase, this would significantly assist the authorities in resolving the case, said Prof. Asenov.

Engineer Veselin Davidov pointed out that the authorities designated to exercise control thereof are the mobile units of the National Toll Administration and the bodies of the Ministry of Interior and the National Customs Agency. He emphasised that in line with the international practice, anyone using the roads without a vignette will be furnished with the right to avoid an administrative offence by paying a compensatory fee. The amount of the compensatory fee for passenger cars is planned to be BGN 70, for heavy goods vehicles with a total technically permissible maximum mass between 3.5 and 12 tons the fee will be BGN 125, and for vehicles with weight over 12 tons this fee will amount to BGN 175, said Mr Davidov and added that these taxes are about to be promulgated in the State Gazette.

Together with the World Bank, we are at the final stage for determining the scope and method of payment for heavy goods vehicles with a total technically permissible maximum mass over 3.5 tons or the so-called toll fee, said Mr Davidov. In his words, currently two thirds of the revenue for using the road network is collected from passenger cars; while the toll fee shall introduce a fairer use of the road infrastructure.

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