Construction is in the core of economic growth

Your Excellency, two-thirds of the territory of Austria is in the East Alps. What challenges do mountains place before construction of roads?  Mountains are difficult terrains for construction of roads. It is very expensive to construct roads and railways there because tunnels and bridges are needed. Today it is important also to have in mind the ecological aspect because the Alps region is very sensitive. The Alps are important transport corridor not only for Austria. The mountains direct the traffic and so along some routes we have big problems with the heavy traffic. For instance, the traffic from Germany to Italy through the Brenner Pass is very heavy. For Austria of special importance as part of its European policy is to attract the attention of its European partners to these problems. 
As Ambassador to our country you have probably noticed that Sofia has transport problems. Are there traffic jams in your capital? How is road infrastructure settled there? Road infrastructure in Austria in principle is very good. In recent decades especially along the route to Germany and Southeastern Europe transit roads through the Alps turned into highways. The challenge we are facing now is to construct more and better roads to the north and to the east which is very important after the accession of our neighboring countries to the European Union. With regard to Vienna, as in every big city there are traffic jams. In our capital is built a good system of city transport. We are really proud of it. We also have a very well-developed network of the metro which is constantly expanding. These factors facilitate a lot travelling through our capital. On ecological reasons now is also very important to expand the network of city transport. Besides, better conditions should be created for the people who want to use motorcycles for transport in the city. Vienna has very good bicycle alleys that run through its whole territory. This is the thing that developing cities as Sofia should have in mind when they plan new infrastructure schemes. 
“Stroitel” newspaper is the official edition of the Bulgarian builder. What message will you make to our readers? I think that a great challenge for Bulgaria is to use the European funds to build its infrastructure. The construction industry is in the core of this undertaking. Europe hopes Bulgaria to use to the maximum the envisaged funds because this will bring to economic activity and investment. Austrian companies are interested in co-operation with their Bulgarian counterparts in funds absorption. The use of European financing is a key criterion for the future growth of Bulgaria.