A national protest against road accidents will take place today. Roads will be blocked in a number of cities across the country where serious accidents have occurred. 

"We are at war. Every year 500-600 people die in road accidents involving motor vehicles. Most of the victims are young people," Ivan Spasov, organiser of the protest and representative of 250 Bulgarian families who have lost loved ones in road accidents, told BNR. 

The protesters want tougher penalties, legislative changes and better road infrastructure. Among their demands is that driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs be recognised as a deliberate crime. According to Spasov, under the current law, if a driver kills a person, he now remains in custody for 3 months. After that, he either absconds or gets a suspended sentence.

In 2022 alone, 531 people were killed and 8,422 injured in 6,609 serious traffic accidents on Bulgaria's roads, according to Interior Ministry statistics.