Sustainability implications of railway infrastructure charging and cost allocation: the case of Bulgaria

The necessity of market-based decisions is a key factor for the development of the railway transport. The main aim of this paper is to study the infrastructure charging regime and cost allocation methodology, currently, in use in Bulgaria in order to reveal the level of implementation of the European transport pricing policy in the country. The analysis of adopted cost allocation approaches as well as the current market signals and their influence on the railways performance permits to outline the opportunities for implementation of new progressive pricing principles which could facilitate the move towards sustainable transport.