Sofia Launches ‘Summer on the Cobblestones’ Initiative as 'Tsar Osvoboditel' Boulevard Becomes Car-Free at Weekends

Sofia will launch the "Summer on the Cobblestones" initiative in August, with Tsar Osvoboditel Boulevard closed to vehicles during weekends, the Sofia Municipality announced.

The municipality added that it will monitor how restricting car traffic affects the quality of the urban environment by measuring air quality indicators in the area in real time.

During each pedestrian weekend, the Sofia Municipality’s mobile automatic monitoring station will record concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂). The data will be publicly available through the Sofia Municipality’s air quality monitoring platform.

The initiative will make it possible to collect specific data on the impact of temporarily freeing one of the city’s most iconic thoroughfares from vehicle traffic.

The pedestrian zone will operate every weekend in August, from 6.00am on Saturday until 10.00pm on Sunday. The choice of period is not accidental – August is traditionally the month with the lowest level of car traffic in Sofia, allowing traffic arrangements to be adapted with minimal impact on the city’s daily rhythm.

During the initiative, vehicle traffic along Tsar Osvoboditel Boulevard will be suspended in the section between Knyaz Aleksandar I Street and Vasil Levski Boulevard. Access will remain available around National Assembly Square and along G.S. Rakovski Street. Alternative routes will be provided for motorists, while public transport will continue to serve the area, with night bus routes running along Knyaz Aleksandar Dondukov Boulevard.

With "Summer on the Cobblestones", Sofia Municipality is taking another step towards more active use of central urban spaces – as places for meetings, culture and shared experiences.

The Yellow Cobblestones are among the capital’s most recognisable symbols. Limiting vehicle traffic in this part of the city aims to help preserve the historical heritage, as well as reduce noise and harmful emissions in central Sofia.