Varna Municipality has entered into a two-year contract worth up to 264,000 BGN (excluding VAT) with “KONE” Ltd. for the maintenance of stairlift platforms for people with disabilities in the city’s underpasses.
Despite this, it is rare to see a functioning lift in a Varna underpass, let alone anyone actually using one. This issue has persisted for over a decade.
The platforms were installed between 2013 and 2016 as part of the “Integrated Urban Transport of Varna” project. The total funding for the transport project, which included various other activities, amounted to approximately 115 million BGN under the “Regional Development” Operational Program 2007-2013.
EcoVarna sought to uncover the reasons behind the malfunctioning stairlifts through our representative’s participation in two key meetings—with officials from Varna Municipality and representatives of “KONE” Ltd.
Punchline 1: “Inno-cent”
The facilities in the underpasses were installed by the company “Liftcom Service” Ltd. “KONE Bulgaria” has no involvement in the original public procurement for their installation, which is currently subject to a prosecutorial investigation.
Several years ago, the Finnish company KONE acquired the maintenance contract portfolio, service network, technicians, and mobile teams of “Liftcom” nationwide (including the offices in Varna, Sofia, Plovdiv, and Burgas).
When KONE won the public procurement for the maintenance of these platforms in early 2021, approximately half of the facilities were operational. By the time they won again in 2024, only a single lift remained functional—located at the “Otdih I Cultura“ bus stop in the direction of St. Constantine and Helena.
According to the contract, “the assignment of activities applies to the specified platforms that are technically sound. For facilities that the contracting authority wishes to include additionally, an assignment letter is issued specifying the start date of the service.
Punchline 2: “Un-fit”
According to KONE’s regional manager for Varna, the primary reason for the condition of the stairlifts is that they are designed solely for indoor use. Due to the weather conditions in our region, they corrode, leading to constant operational failures.
Some of these facilities are battery-powered, with a warranty period of only about six months. To recharge, the lifts must be left in either the raised or lowered position.
However, according to Tihomir Timov, Director of the “Engineering Infrastructure and Public Works” Directorate, the manufacturer’s instructions allegedly stated that the equipment was suitable for outdoor installation.
Punchline 3: “We fix them, they break them”
Every week, representatives from KONE Bulgaria and Varna Municipality inspect all 55 platforms in the underpasses. They file reports on the non-working ones and order parts worth thousands of euros at the expense of the municipal budget. Sometimes the delivery of parts takes months from abroad. They repair them the next day or after a few days – they still don’t work. The reason for this is VANDALISM and the “unequal fight” against it, both the maintenance company and the municipality agree.
Punchline 4: “Un-accountable”
The technical and technological condition of the platforms deteriorates with each passing year. The urgent need for upgrades is acknowledged by both the maintenance company and the experts at Varna Municipality. The manufacturer of the platforms – Vimec (Italy) categorically refuses to take responsibility for the facilities and their users if there is an impact on them, claim “KONE”.
The standard warranty period under the original installation contract was two years. Currently, all units are out of warranty, and the responsibility for them lies solely with the maintenance company and the owner—Varna Municipality.
The Fact: “Un-usable”
Ma’am, please don’t get on! Last month, a man in a wheelchair got stuck suspended on this platform. Whatever you do, don’t use it!” This was the desperate advice of a random passerby witnessing a person in a wheelchair attempting to use one of the lifts on Osmi Primorski Polk Blvd. This incident was documented in an EcoVarna report nearly three years ago. Since then, we have not encountered a single instance of these platforms being used for their intended purpose.
According to the maintenance company, “despite the instructions, the platforms are very often not operated correctly.” Furthermore, to use them, people with limited mobility must always have an assistant present and must continuously hold down the button for the lift to move.
According to Snezhana Apostolova, Deputy Mayor for Social Affairs, it is necessary to conduct an analysis and gather statistics on how many people actually use them—and whether they even have the desire to do so.
The Alternative
The technological lifespan of these facilities has come to an end, according to the maintenance company. “Whatever we do, we are just patching things up, but the situation is not improving,” stated a KONE representative during a meeting at Varna Municipality with civil society groups. During the meeting, it was revealed that KONE Bulgaria had proposed replacing the platforms with elevators.
Installing two elevators on both sides of a single underpass would cost the local treasury nearly half a million euros. Replacing all 55 platforms in 29 underpasses currently seems financially unattainable for the local budget. But would it even be a viable alternative?
In several Varna underpasses—along Vladislav Varnenchik Blvd. and Knyaz Boris I Blvd.—elevators already exist, yet not a single one is operational. While some require more than just repairs—needing total replacement—the elevators in the central underpass near “The Visor” (Kozirkata) remain broken for a completely different reason.
“I will not send a technician into a public toilet,” stated the maintenance company firmly. Cleaning the elevators has not been assigned as anyone’s responsibility, and they are frequently occupied by homeless individuals.
The reason, as often happens in life, turns out to be quite prosaic.
