New underground line gets back on track

Less than a month after officially opening, trains on Sofia's latest extension to its cramped and wheezing underground system were running again after a short circuit brought the system to an abrupt halt this week.

Commuters and visitors to the city will again be able to breathe a tad more freely in the air-conditioned cars running on the extension from Vassil Levski national stadium to the downtown area of Mladost in the south of the city. The new track was officially opened at the start of May and commuters have been pinching themselves ever since as the trains have actually been departing and arriving on cue. Sofia's underground system is plagued with constantly delayed trains and dilapidated carriages that are renown for dodgy doors that jam and that are generally rated as dirty, overcrowded, overheated and prone to breaking down.

The extension was already overdue - in fact the good burghers of Mladost have been hearing talk of of a line extension for decades - and more improvements to the network are due later in the year when trains should be running from the national stadium to the Serdika district. Work also begun in February on the construction of a line from Mladost to the city's airport - making it even easier for travellers to head into the city.