traffic

Hungarian state bus company Volánbusz on the verge of collapse? – UPDATED

Volánbusz Budapest seat reservation

The company lacks approximately 1,000 drivers, which makes it impossible to fill in the shortage when employees are on sick leave. There were massive delays on several bus lines yesterday for this reason, which outraged even the former transport secretary. The solution would be a significant pay rise,  however, the company lacks the necessary budget as well.

According to RTL Klub, Volánbusz lacks approximately 1,000 drivers, based on the Szolidaritás bus trade union’s figures. To make things worse, the government decided to close several train lines. Passengers may use replacement buses on those routes, but that drains further the critically low manpower of the state-owned company.

Dávid Vitézy, Hungary’s former transport secretary, wrote on his Facebook page that 35 buses should have entered Budapest from Budakeszi this morning based on the relevant data of the satellite traffic control system. However, only 21 did so on lines 22, 22A and 222 between 7 am and 9 am. That is only 60% of the required service. As a consequence, many commuters could not get on the buses or had to wait more than 10-20 minutes for the next vehicle.

 

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Bus trade union disagrees with Volánbusz

Vitézy said that due to the severe labour shortage, Volánbusz could not provide a sufficient number of buses on Budapest’s suburb lines, which caused delays from Budakeszi, Gyál, Törökbálint and Solymár to Budapest yesterday. In other parts of the country, they have to employ dozens of additional buses and drivers as replacements because of the closed train lines. Volánbusz shared their reaction on Monday, saying that seven drivers fell ill, that is what caused the serious delays. They sent their apologies to the passengers.

However, the Szolidaritás bus trade union disagrees with Volánbusz. Based on their data, the company lacks 1,000 drivers. István Dobi, the trade union’s head, said the replacement buses require way more drivers and that poses further challenges. He added that the number of employees leaving the company is worrisome. To end that trend, a 20-25% wage rise should be given in 2024.

UPDATE (29 September): Mr Dobi’s false claims

We received a statament from Volánbusz reacting on the words of Mr Dobi. The company said the president of the trade union, falsely claimed that they were searching for more than 1,000 drivers. Volánbusz said they employ more than 10,000 drivers and have only 238 vacant positions, but there are regional differences.

Volánbusz added they had the most vacant positions in Pest, Komárom-Esztergom, Győr-Moson-Sopron and Csongrád-Csanád counties. HERE you may check them out. Furthermore, they redirected drivers from different counties for the replacement buses between Biatorbágy and Sződliget.

The company added they took multiple measures to maintain workforce. Among others, they give SZÉP voucher card to their employees and provide free travel for them on Volánbusz, MÁV and GYSEV lines. Furthermore, their family members may also use Volánbusz lines for free. Finally, they raised night shift allowance for their employees and pay special attention on training new drivers.

Attention: Renovation begins on busy Hungarian motorway

Motorway vignette Hungarian

Pay attention when commuting on the M6 motorway in Hungary: the newest round of renovations is starting soon. Painting of the road markings on the M6 motorway closure section will begin shorty.

The extension of the M6 motorway to the border is being built with a 26.6 m crest width on the 20 km section between Bóly and Ivándárda. The road will have a physical separation in the middle and a paved hard shoulder. The design speed is 130 km/h.

The aim of the developments is to improve transport along the Danube and in the Mohács region, as well as to provide a safe and fast service for transit traffic between Northern and Southern Europe, Economx writes. The missing section will complete the national route of the TEN-T corridor linking the Adriatic and Baltic Sea regions by road.

Gábor Boldizsár, the chief architect of Duna Aszfalt Plc., told Magyar Építők that the construction of the missing asphalt wearing course will be completed by mid-September. He added that the assembly of the water treatment technology is also underway, with a trial run to start at the end of September.

The expert also added that the technical handover and temporary opening to traffic of three national road correction sections have been completed so far at the Lippó roundabout, road 5702 and the crossing bridge, and road 5704 and the crossing bridge.

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Week of Safety campaign opened in Budapest

Week of Safety

The safety of children comes first, Bence Rétvári, parliamentary state secretary of the interior ministry, said, opening the Week of Safety campaign in Budapest on Monday.

The campaign focusing on accident prevention and the protection of health and the environment is being organised in coordination with the police force, firefighters, the ambulance service, the Red Cross and the Hungarian Insurers Association (MABISZ), among others, Rétvári told a press conference.

Some 75,000 students have participated in the Week of Safety events in the last seven years, and the campaign’s online videos have received 3.6 million views, he said.

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József Oberling, head of the traffic department at the national police headquarters (ORFK), said that around 14,000-15,000 people are injured in road accidents each year. Some 1,000-1,500 of those are children, often because the parents don’t put them in proper child safety seats or exceed the speed limit without having their own seatbelts fastened, he said.

Police are therefore organising a Safety Days campaign this week which will involve inspections on Wednesday to make sure motorists are wearing their seatbelts and have their children in safety seats, he said. Here is the promo video:

Restrictions will balk traffic in Budapest downtown, airport shuttle concerned

Traffic Budapest Chain Bridge

Thanks to European Mobility Week, traffic will become very difficult on the streets of downtown Budapest this weekend. Let us show you the details.

Traffic changes in Budapest, do not commute following habits

According to index.hu, there will be multiple traffic restrictions concerning downtown streets of the Hungarian capital this weekend. As a result, driving and using public transport will be more difficult since the route of several trams, buses and trolleybuses change. Furthermore, even Budapest’s magnificent Szabadság (Freedom) Bridge will be closed to traffic. HERE you may read about the history of the bridge.

The Budapest Transport Centre (BKK) said on Thursday that they would close the Szabadság Bridge and the Vámház Promenade to the Lónyay Street during the weekend, as there will be a car-free weekend due to the European Mobility Week. BKK added that the Pest lower embankment between the Margaret Bridge and the Irányi Street exit would be opened for pedestrians and will serve as an additional venue for the event.

On Saturday and Sunday, trams nr 47, 48 and 49 will not commute because of the restrictions. But trams nr 61 and 56A will carry passengers on an extended route. The former will commute between Hűvösvölgy and Városház tér stations while the latter between Hűvösvölgy and Kelenföld train station.

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Szabadság Bridge to be closed for traffic – use the metro!

Trolley bus nr 83, bus nr 15 and night buses 934 and 979 will serve passengers on a modified route towards the downtown. Instead of Közraktár Street, they will use Lónyay Street to reach Kálvin Square. Moreover, they will not touch Fővám Square. Bus nr 15 towards the Boráros Square will transport people on the József Attila Street-Bajcsy-Zsilinszky Street-Károly Promenade-Múzeum Promenade-Kálvin Square route. It will not touch the Szent István Square and the Fővám Square stations.

Meanwhile, trolley bus nr 72, buses nr 9, 15 and the airport shuttle 100E will not stop at the tram station on Astoria. Instead, they will use the night bus 914 station there. According to the BKK, there will be a vehicle expo on Saturday and Sunday between 10 AM and 6 PM on Vámház Promenade. 

During the temporary closure of the Szabadság Bridge, BKK recommends passengers use metro line nr 4 or buses nr 7, 133E or metro line 3 and buses 9 or 15 or trolley bus nr 72.

Mayor launches European Mobility Week programme in capital

The message of European Mobility Week is that Budapest is not just made up of motorists, cyclists and public transport passengers, but also residents who want to get around, Gergely Karácsony, the city’s mayor, said on Friday, opening the environmental campaign in the capital. The Budapest city council’s job is to offer Budapest residents sustainable means of transport, Karácsony told a press conference in City Hall Park.

The city has become less liveable in recent years, with more and more people moving outside its borders and driving in to work, putting a burden on the environment, he said. “This negative spiral is what we’d like to reverse,” he said, adding that the city council’s aim was to add more pedestrian crossings and protected bicycle lanes while keeping public squares for residents.

Karácsony noted that the mobility week had started out as a single car-free days, but the city administration today “thinks about this issue in a far more complex way”. Budapest’s leadership does not see the parts of the city as mere “transport vessels” between the workplace, school and the home, but rather as “the place where we live, and whose quality fundamentally impacts how we live”, he said. Meanwhile, the mayor said the claim that the city was seeing a sudden surge in congestion was false, citing international statistics as showing that there were fewer traffic jams in the capital.

Attention: 10,000 people paralyse Budapest this weekend

traffic Budapest Hungary transport

The 38th Wizz Air half-marathon will be held in Budapest on September 10. Closures and traffic restrictions are to be expected in the capital.

The 38th Wizz Air half-marathon

If you are not running the Wizz Air Budapest half-marathon on Sunday, September 10, you should avoid the capital, napi.hu advises. The start and finish area will be at the Pázmány Péter promenade. More than 10,000 people entered the 38th event, said Árpád Kocsis, competition director.

6,300 runners applied for the 21.1-kilometer individual half-marathon, of which 1,170 are preparing for their first half-marathon. In this race, every fourth competitor will be a foreigner. The 2,100 foreign competitors are arriving fo Budapest from 94 countries.

Most of them come from Slovakia, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Poland, the Czech Republic and Israel. 60 percent of the domestic competitors start from 750 Hungarian settlements, said the race director.

Traffic changes in Budapest on the weekend

The Pázmány Péter promenade will be closed from 8 AM on Saturday to 9 PM on Sunday.

The following areas of Budapest will be closed on Sunday:

  • The entire length of the lower quay in Buda between 6 AM and 1 PM, and the lower quay in Pest between 7 AM and 2.30 PM (also closed to pedestrians).
  • Árpád fejedelem Road between 8 AM and 9.40 AM.
  • Műegyetem Quay between 8.20 AM and 2 PM.
  • Újpest Quay between 8.30 AM and 10.30 AM.
  • Szabadság (Liberty) Bridge and Szent Gellért Square between 9 AM and 2 PM.

Also, expect lane closures on the Buda side of the Árpád Bridge from 8.30 AM to 10 AM, and on the Buda side of the Margit Bridge from 8.30 AM to 10.15 AM. Prepare for closure between 12 and 1 PM in Fő Street at Clark Ádám Square, Jégverem Street, Bem Quay at Halász Street, Clark Ádám Square, Chain Bridge and Eötvös Square.

Tavasz Street will be closed between 8.20 AM and 9.45 AM, and Margaret Island central road from 8.30 AM to 10.10 AM.

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Insane price hike: that’s what the 2024 Hungarian motorway vignettes will cost

Motorway vignette Hungary

The official Hungarian road tolls have been published. The vignette prices will automatically rise as the value of the Hungarian forint plummets. 

Since the August 2023 inflation figures are now published, the costs of Hungarian motorway vignettes for 2024 have also been revealed. In recent years, they have been always calculated on the basis of historical prices and inflation.

According to hvg.hu, an increase of 16.4% can be expected. Based on these figures, the most popular D1 motorway vignette prices are as follows:

  • 10-day national vignette: HUF 6,400 (EUR 16.6)
  • monthly national vignette: HUF 10,360 (EUR 26,9)
  • yearly national vignette: HUF 57,260 (EUR 148,4)
  • county vignette: HUF 6,660 (EUR 17,3)

In the past, prices did not always rise in line with the regulation, nor did all motorway tolls increase uniformly.

The price of the annual national vignette and the county vignette soared by 5%, while the 10-day vignette rose by 71%, and the monthly pass costs 44% more.

Budapest transport ticket costs increased, traffic changes affecting even ‘party tram’

Budapest traffic travel European summer no-go zones visitor numbers

We must pay significantly more for a single ticket if we want to use Budapest’s public transport system. Furthermore, traffic will change due to tram nr 4-6 not commuting during this weekend, and Nyugati railway station’s subway system will be closed to the public.

According to nlc.hu, BKK, Budapest’s public transport company, increased single ticket prices on Friday. That means we have to pay HUF 450 (EUR 1.17) instead of HUF 350, a considerable rise. Moreover, single tickets bought on the spot will cost HUF 600 (EUR 1.56) instead of HUF 450. The upsurge affects the block of 10 tickets as well, which costs HUF 4,000 (EUR 10.4) from yesterday.

BKK had not increased its prices since 2011. It even reduced the costs of passes in 2013. Since then, only the ticket prices for the airport express 100E went up twice this year. Gergely Karácsony, Budapest’s mayor, said the price increase was compulsory to maintain the safety of the capital’s public transport system. Old single tickets (bought for the lower price) will expire on 31 August 2024. HERE you can find the current Budapest public transport prices.

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Running competition, party tram and Nyugati railway station

Meanwhile, BKK announced they would carry out maintenance on tram line nr 4-6 in Budapest. That line is also known as the capital’s party tram line since it commutes on Budapest’s Grand Boulevard and connects multiple popular bars, restaurants, hotels and pubs. Therefore, tourists and students prefer to use those trams in the evening.

Due to maintenance work on Margit Boulevard (Buda), trams will commute only between South Buda and Jászai Mari tér stations this weekend. Based on index.hu, between the Széll Kálmán Square and Nyugati railway station, you may use tram replacement buses. From Sunday night to Monday morning trams will cease operation, and buses will carry passengers on the entire line. The buses will stop at the bus stations instead of the tram stations.

There will be a running competition in Budapest this weekend, changing traffic and public transport. The restrictions concern districts 1, 2, 5, and 11. The Generali Night Run kicks off this evening and follows a route including the Buda Castle and the Várkert Bazaar. Furthermore, from today 6 AM Lánchíd Street, and from today 2 PM the Várkert embankment and the tram lines will be closed until Sunday early morning.

Budapest’s main railway station, Nyugati, will close its underpasses after this weekend, MÁV wrote. The restriction will start on 4 September, and MÁV shared a map where passengers can enter and leave the station. Here it is:

Budapest Nyugati from 4 September
Photo: MÁV

Toll rules to be changed, more toll roads in Hungary

toll road hungary

Major changes are coming to Hungarian roads. More road sections will be toll roads, buses will get a break on buying e-vignettes, and lorries will see a change in toll rates and a new category of tolls, in short.

The Ministry of Construction and Transport is to rewrite the rules on road tolls. A draft was posted on the government’s website on Friday, with almost a full week for public consultation until 1 September. In its impact assessment, the ministry estimates that this would raise an extra HUF 150.7 billion (EUR 395 million) a year, hvg.hu reports.

More roads to be subject to tolls

The list of toll road sections will be extended. In addition to the existing ones, tolls will be charged in the following areas:

  • The M0 motorway between the M1 and M5 and the M4 and M3 will be subject to tolls, making the entire road subject to tolls.
  • the M44 from the Lakitelek/Tiszakécske junction to Békéscsaba;
  • the section of the M30 between Miskolc North and Miskolc South (the only toll-free section there until now);
  • the M6 between Bátaszék and the M6-M60 junction;
  • the M4 motorway from Jászberény to Abony North and from Abony East to Szolnok West;
  • the M76 from Balatonszentgyörgy to Keszthely-Fenékpuszta.

There will be one major beneficiary of the measures: buses will no longer need to buy e-vignettes, hvg.hu adds.

If the proposal becomes law as currently drafted, the changes will take effect from 1 January 2024. Except for buses: changes will be effective from February. The full draft is available HERE. The government welcomes suggestions and comments until 1 September at ta******************@ek*.hu.

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Significantly higher fuel prices expected from next January

MOL fuel shortage Hungary

Experts said that Hungarians paid the price of the government’s fuel price caps introduced before the 2022 general elections, bringing Orbán a fourth consecutive landslide victory. Analysts believe the prices will continue to rise, and 2024 may start with record-high prices concerning gasoline and diesel.

Tamás Pletser, Erste’s oil and gas analyst, highlighted that product prices increased drastically compared to crude costs. The two main reasons are the weak forint and the rising crude oil prices. Furthermore, the market changed in Hungary due to the fuel price caps the Orbán administration introduced in November 2021 and abolished only in December 2022. Based on their experience, competition is lower in the retail and wholesale sectors. As a result, prices are higher.

Eszter Bujdos, the CEO of holtankoljak.hu, said the prices were affected by the Hungarian forint-American dollar exchange rate. If the price of Brent-type oil changed, its effect would be plausible in the Hungarian market just days later.

One of their colleagues said that in the biggest city of Sicily, Catania, diesel costs 1.72 EUR/l, while gasoline type 95 is 1.89 EUR/l. In Spain, those costs are 1.85 EUR (gasoline) and 1.72 EUR (diesel). Compared to neighbouring countries, the price differences are no longer significant except in Romania. One litre of gasoline costs only RON 7.5 (1.52) in Hungary’s Eastern neighbour. Therefore, a lot of Hungarians travel there to do the shopping or buy fuel.

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Tax will increase drastically from January

Among the reasons experts mentioned the high Hungarian taxes compared to the Romanian, Austrian, or Croatian ones. Furthermore, in Hungary, service providers must pay a 4.5 pc excess profits tax, which is, in practice, a VAT increase. Thus, it is covered by the consumers, the car drivers.

According to the analysts, we should not expect a significant price rise until the end of this year. However, from 1 January, fuel prices will exceed HUF 700 (EUR 1.83). That is because the excise tax on fuel products will increase by HUF 41. Tamás Pletser believes that service providers will include that sum in the consumer price.

Beware! Swindlers try to sell tickets for the World Athletics Championships in Budapest

Swindlers try to sell tickets for the World Athletics Championships

Swindlers try to deceive people who could not buy an official ticket for the World Athletics Championships in Budapest.

According to Telex, the swindlers try to sell people copied tickets for tourists and locals for astronomical prices. The organisers of the world’s third biggest sports event told the Hungarian news agency that in the last few days, it was almost impossible to get a ticket for the evening programmes of the championships. By Tuesday night, all available tickets were sold out for the finals. You were not able to buy any more online or offline at the cashier’s desk of the National Athletics Centre.

Several people complained that they bought tickets on different online platforms. But when they tried to enter the stadium, it became clear that their ticket was only a cheap copy of the original. Even if somebody copies a ticket several times, you can enter only once with one specific ticket because the ordinal number matters instead of the physical ticket.

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Budapest bridge will be dismantled, traffic system changes

Due to the dismantling of the passengers’ bridge on Budapest’s emblematic Heroes’ Square, traffic restrictions will be introduced from Monday evening until Wednesday morning on Andrássy Avenue and Heroes’ Square, Budapest Transport Center said.

As a result, bus lines 105 and 210 will commute on a modified route on Podmaniczky Street. Night bus nr 979 will carry passengers in the Király and Damjanich streets and will not touch Bajza and Benczúr streets and the Heroes’ Square or Kodály körönd bus stops. From 10 PM on Tuesday, the tower will be encircled until Wednesday morning, which will modify the route of the 979 night bus.

Motorway sticker prices may increase again in Hungary significantly

Motorway vignette Hungary

The prime minister’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyás, said the government was expected to make a decision on raising the price of motorway stickers in the second half of September, adding that the rule of thumb was to index prices to inflation. Answering a question about railway services, Gulyás said the government was not planning any further closures of lines.

Meanwhile, Gulyás said in response to a question that more wage hikes were coming on January 1 next year, but the government was also working to ensure pay rises in the real economy throughout the year. The government’s spokesperson, Alexandra Szentkirályi, said the recent price drops indicated that multinational supermarkets had been unjustifiably overpricing products in the recent period. She said the price-monitoring platform had drawn some 1.2 million visitors since its launch on July 1, adding that it will receive updates in the near future, including an expansion of the product categories based on user feedback.

Gulyás said Hungary was consulting with every country on the potential introduction of national import bans on Ukrainian grain if the EU ban is not extended, particularly the four other countries bordering Ukraine. He emphasised, at the same time, that Hungary’s decision would not depend on what the other countries decide. Poland will certainly introduce a measure identical to Hungary’s, he added.

Read also:

  • Hungarian AgMin: Import ban on Ukrainian grain should be extended beyond Sept 15 – Read more HERE

Asked about the current recession and whether he saw the need to amend the government’s target economic growth rate of 1.5 percent, Gulyás said the government would wait for the third-quarter GDP figures before finalising their decision in October. He confirmed that there was little chance of achieving a growth rate of 1.5 percent in light of the figures registered in the first two quarters. The government had not expected a major change in the second quarter, he said, adding that the only positive development had been that the recession had eased. The government expects the economy to return to growth in the second half, Gulyás said, adding that the 4 percent growth target next year hopefully would be achieved. Asked if this year’s budget would be workable, Gulyás said this could only be determined once the Q3 data was in. The government sees no fundamental issues with the budget, and the most difficult task will be keeping to the deficit target, he said.

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Asked about battery plants and guest workers in Hungary, Gulyás said guest workers were allowed to enter and work in Hungary under strict regulations and only in areas where there was a labour shortage. Concerning local residents’ concerns, he said it was up to the employer to ensure that “foreign workers do not pose a problem” for locals. Referring to concerns about battery plants being built in Hungary, Gulyás said they were necessary “if Hungary wants to save its car industry”, since “the European Union had the idea of eliminating internal combustion engines”. Without those battery plants, Hungary would lose its car makers within 10 years, he insisted. All plants working with hazardous materials will be closed if they break relevant rules, he said, adding that opportunities to raise the fines for such violations would be examined.

Migrants who turn up at the border without skills in the hope of a better life “should be stopped”, he said. Guest workers, however, subject to national security vetting arriving via registered agencies “to take a vacant position for a definite period of time, are a different category,” he said.

Answering a question about the closure of the Mátrai power station, Gulyás said the government was negotiating a possible extension with the European Commission. Should the commission grant its approval “the government will take up the opportunity, but this will largely be dependent on the energy situation,” he added. Meanwhile, Gulyás said Hungary’s gas storage facilities were 88 percent full, ensuring heating for homes for 219 winter days.

VIDEO: Shocking accident involving athletes at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest

Shocking accident World Athletics Championships Budapest

A shocking accident happened in Budapest yesterday evening, involving numerous athletes outside Hungary’s brand-new national athletics centre.

We know exactly what happened because the collision between two buggies carrying athletes from the training courts to the athletics centre was recorded by surveillance cameras. One assistant fell out from a buggy, and 200m athletes suffered minor injuries. Based on the video shared, it seems something hit Andrew Hudson’s eyes in the collision, 444.hu wrote. To our mind, not the accident itself was shocking but how it happened. It seems as if the drivers of the buggies did not recognize each other, as if they did not concentrate on the road but something distracted their attention.

However, the Jamaican athlete continued the program and finished at 5th place. He said his legs were hurt in the collision and added that shards of glass went into his eyes. Therefore, the organisers allowed him to compete in today’s finals as 9th. Here is the video:

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Traffic rules change due to the accident

After the collision, the organisers of the third biggest sports event in the world reduced the speed limit around the national athletics centre. It was 19 km/h before, but it has been reduced to 15 km/h. Moreover, a physical separation will be created between the two lanes. From Friday dawn, there will be traffic controllers in the junctions. Because of the accident, the buggy drivers were sent on a 2-day rest. The organisers expressed their apologies for the accident.

PM Orbán: World Athletics Championships ‘one of the best in the world’

The World Athletics Championships currently under way in Budapest and the arena hosting it are among the best in the world, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in an interview on public radio on Friday. Athletes will spread the good reputation of Hungary worldwide, he said. “Foreigners are now saying we are good hosts, that this is a decent country where everyone is welcome, a friendly country, and . one where the Christian roots of love can still be found,” he said.

The arenas built for sports also serve as venues for other kinds of evens, he said. Puskas Arena saw more concerts this year than football matches, so “the whining about money being squandered and about this being only about sports and the personal hobby of a few people, including the prime minister, is just not true,” he said. Sports venues are community spaces serving all “well-meaning Hungarians” by hosting concerts, conferences and “other huge events”, he said. “The cultural products of the western world don’t stop at Vienna any more, they come to Budapest too,” he added.

Get ready: Half Budapest to be closed this weekend

Budapest traffic changes

The marathon races of the World Athletics Championships will be held on Saturday and Sunday morning, 26 and 27 August, in Budapet. The route of the competition will be closed and the affected public transport services will run on a modified route, the Budapest Transport Centre (BKK) said on Thursday.

From 4 AM on Saturday until 11 AM and from 4 AM on Sunday until 12.30 PM on Sunday, traffic will be prohibited in the area of Heroes’ Square, on Dózsa György Street, on Andrássy Avenue-József Attila Street-Chain Bridge-Castle Tunnel-Attila Street. During the race, pedestrians will be allowed to cross only at the designated points. For easier access, they recommend using the metro, Pénzcentrum writes.

Traffic restrictions are expected on Andrássy Avenue throughout the weekend. The entire Andrássy Avenue will be closed in the morning of the competitions, while in the afternoon and evening, the section between Oktogon and Heroes’ Square will be closed, BKK added.

They also pointed out that the section of Podmaniczky Street between Izabella Street and Szinnyei Merse Street will be closed from Friday to Sunday evening, 25 August, due to the Terézváros Festival.

Details of the affected lines and traffic changes can be found on the BKK website and in the BudapestGO app.

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Grim trend: More and more road killers on Hungarian roads

car accident

In recent years, the number of road endangerment incidents on Hungarian roads has skyrocketed. But what can explain the jump?

Almost twice as many road hazards in 2022 than in 2020

While in 2020 only 167, in 2022 almost twice as many, 293 road hazards were registered, napi.hu learned from the National Police Headquarters (ORFK). Although in the judicial statistics, road accidents are not recorded according to the date of their occurrence, but according to the date of their entry, i.e. after the investigation has been closed.

Nevertheless, the number of road endangerment cases is increasing at an astonishing rate, which will be confirmed by the statistics for this year and the coming years. According to the portal, serious research is needed to find out the reasons for this increase.

Accident vs endangering

An important distinction between causing a road accident and endangering the safety of a road user is that the former is a reckless offence and the latter is an intentional offence. In the latter case, intentionality means that the perpetrator foresees the consequences of their act and either accepts or even wishes for them.

According to a lawyer interviewed by napi.hu, road endangerment can be any behaviour that endangers the life or physical safety of road users. Even the passenger of the vehicle can be a victim.

Penalty

The ORFK also revealed that the initiation of road endangerment procedures by victims has been particularly facilitated by the proliferation of on-board cameras. Typical behaviours include tailgating, penalty braking, but also conflict between motorist and cyclist.

Road endangerment is punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment in the main, but the sentence can be 1-5, 2-8 or 5-10 years, depending on whether the offence causes serious bodily harm, permanent disability, serious impairment of health or mass casualties, or death. In all cases, the court will disqualify the offender from driving.

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Attention: Public transport changes in Budapest this weekend

Budapest public transport BKK ticket validation easter timetable changes

The World Athletics Championships begin in Budapest today. On Sunday, there will be significant changes to transport in the Hungarian capital due to the events of the 20th of August celebrations. However, the police say that there will not be a continuous closure, but a so-called “dynamic closure”, where only the section of the road is closed and only for as long as necessary. There will be restrictions in 11 districts in Budapest.

20th of August celebrations

Infostart wrote that due to the preparations for the 20 August celebrations, the lower quay of Buda between Rákóczi Bridge and Margaret Bridge is already closed. The lower quay of Pest between Margaret Bridge and Közraktár Bridge will be closed from 10 PM on Friday evening until 6 AM on Monday morning. The Műegyetem quay will also be closed from Budafoki Street to Bertalan Lajos Street. From Friday midnight, closures in both directions are expected.

From Friday, tram 19 will run between Bécsi Road–Vörösvári Road and Clark Ádám Square, and between Kelenföld railway station and Döbrentei Square. Tram 41 will be diverted to run via Krisztina Boulevard, so it will not stop at the stops between Szent Lukács Spa and Rudas Spa. Trams 2, 2B and 23 will not run between Jászai Mari Square and Kossuth Lajos Square–Széchenyi Quay from 6 PM on Friday evening.

World Athletics Championships

The World Athletics Championships kicks off today, so there will be further closures and restrictions. Due to the preparations, Kós Károly promenade and Heroes’ Square are already closed until Monday morning. The area around the National Athletics Centre on Kvassay Jenő Road will also be closed. Soroksári Road’s service road is also closed from Lechner Ödön Alley, Hajóállomás Street from Kvassay Jenő Street and Laczkovich Street.

On Saturday and Sunday, from the early hours to 11 AM, Andrássy Street will be closed between Bajza Street and Heroes’ Square, and Dózsa György Street between Városligeti Alley and Podmaniczky Street. On Sunday evening, the Rákóczi Bridge from Pest to Buda will be closed from around 7:20 PM. In addition, there will be restrictions on the route Szerémi Road–Hengermalom Road–Fehérvári Road–Bocskai Road–Karolina Road–Budaörsi Road–Alkotás Street–Krisztina Boulevard–Buda Castle.

Suggestions for travelling in Budapest

Due to the events, BKK’s surface services will run on a modified, diverted, shortened route. Therefore it is recommended to use the metro network of Budapest. In addition, it is worth getting informed before departure. You can use the BKK website, the BudapestGo app or the BKK Info website.

MAP: Traffic in Budapest will be nightmarish in the next few days

Budapest traffic changes

Budapest celebrates Hungary’s national day today and tomorrow, while the World Athletics Championships kicks off today. Therefore, traffic changes significantly, and there will be a lot of closures and temporary traffic restrictions in the downtown of the Hungarian capital. Furthermore, on Sunday, even the Turkish president is to arrive in Budapest, one of the most well-protected heads of state in the world.

Closures in Budapest downtown and South Pest: traffic difficult

Due to the 20 August celebrations, which is Hungary’s main national day, authorities introduced multiple traffic restrictions spanning between 12 and 23 August in Budapest. For example, you cannot stop on the Pest lower quay, the Northern and Southern parking lot of the Chain Bridge, and on both sides of the Jane Haining quay between the Chain Bridge and the Elizabeth Bridge. Moreover, you cannot leave your car on the Danube side of the Sztehlo Gábor quay between the Halász Street and the Margaret Bridge and the Műegyetem quay between the Szent Gellért Square and the Bertalan Lajos Street.

The closures concern the Szabadság Bridge, the Buda lower quay, the Műegyetem quay and the Pest quay between the Jászai Mari Square and the Közraktár Street. Importantly, you will not be able to use the following bridges this weekend: Elizabeth/Erzsébet Bridge, Szabadság/Freedom Bridge and the Chain Bridge.

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Temporary traffic restrictions affect the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 8th, 9th, 11th, and 13th districts of Budapest and some parts of the 14th district. HERE you can read the full list on the official website of the Hungarian police. However, unfortunately, it has not been translated into English. But below, there is a map which helps you understand the rules easily.

Today marks the beginning of the World Athletics Championships. Therefore, traffic restrictions will take place in the 1st, 5th, 6th, 8th, 9th, 12th, 13th, 14th and 21st districts of Budapest. The main venues of the competitions will be in the brand new national athletics centre in the 9th district, near the Danube and on the training tracks in Csepel (21st district). Some of the restrictions may last until 15 September, Szeretlek Magyarország wrote.

Police helps with MAP

Because of the event, you may not leave your car on the Állatkert/Zoo promenade between Gundel Károly Street and the Heroes’ Square, on the service roads of the Andrássy Avenue between Dózsa György Street and Munkácsy Mihály Street and Kodály körönd.

Since the national athletics centre is located in South Budapest, many streets will be closed for public traffic in that area as well. Some are Soroksári Street, Laczkovich Street, Csepel quay, Dalai Láma Street, Szabad Hongkong (Free Hongkong) Street, and Csont Street. Furthermore, the temporary closures concern the Olof Palme promenade, Verona angyalai (Angels of Verona) Street, and the Kós Károly promenade in Budapest’s 6th district. The Hungarian police shared the sections and streets concerned HERE.

Probably the main rule is that you should not travel by car to Andrássy Avenue, the Deák Ferenc Square, the Buda Castle, and to the lower quays of Budapest this weekend. To help people decide about the best option, the police made a map of the changes. It is in Hungarian, but it is easy to understand. The meaning of the colours is the following:

  • brown: road closure
  • blue: forbidden to stop
  • orange: temporarily closed
  • yellow: two-way traffic introduced

In the “description” (leírás) section, you may check out the exact times and dates of the changes. Here is the map:

Considerable changes in Buda Castle this weekend

Buda Castle

The celebrations for 20 August, the anniversary of the founding of the Hungarian state, begin on Saturday, 19 August. On this occasion, pedestrian traffic will be significantly restricted in the Castle district in Budapest.

On 20 August, the Buda Castle district of Budapest will be accessible from one direction only from the morning hours onwards, turizmus.com reports, based on the Association of Hungarian Travel Agencies (Magyar Utazási Irodák Szövetsége, MUISZ).

Due to the closure of the Savoya Terrace (Savoyai terasz) and Szent György Street, the Szent István Hall, the Hunyadi Courtyard (Hunyadi udvar) and the Csikós Courtyard (Csikós udvar) can only be visited from the direction of the Palota Road.

Karakas pasha spire Buda Castle
Photo: facebook.com/nemzetihauszmannprogram

In addition to the Tabán lifts, it is recommended to use the pedestrian ramp next to the Karakas Pasha tower, and the Stöckl stairs or the Hauszmann ramp at the Lovarda (Riding Hall) level. The Várkert Bazaar is open, but the Mária lift is not in operation.

The capacity of the Budavár Palace District is limited, so it may not be possible to access the area from the direction of Tabán due to the huge interest, MUISZ points out.

Hungarian public transport companies ensure you get home smoothly after Sziget Festival

Hungarian public transport Sziget

The relevant statement was shared by the MÁV-Volán Group, the Hungarian company responsible for public train and bus traffic.

The statement published on mavcsoport.hu says that both branches expect an increased traffic load in the next two days after the closing day of Europe’s largest pop festival, Budapest’s Sziget. Therefore, they will add more carriages to the Eurocity trains commuting between Budapest and Vienna. Furthermore, Citadella Intercity to Ljubljana will also operate with additional carriages.

If it’s necessitated, MÁV also promised to launch KISS trains between Budapest and Hegyeshalom, Hungary’s main border crossing to Austria. Said trains will depart from Keleti Railway Station with a scheduled stop at Kelenföld Station. Moreover, MÁV will employ more staff to provide information to festivalgoers travelling home from Budapest. 

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Train, bus, suburban railway, HÉV takes you home after Sziget

Meanwhile, MÁV-HÉV will also increase its capacities in Budapest to help people leave the venue of the festival, the Hajógyári Island. Trains will leave every ten minutes towards downtown, even at nighttime. In the direction of Szentendre, that will be 60 minutes since traffic will be considerably lower. Furthermore, the HÉV security crew will do its utmost best to help passengers navigate through Budapest’s transport network. The modified schedule will remain in effect until 2pm today. You may use HÉV trains in the direction of downtown with your Sziget CityPASS by Budapest Card. You can also plan your journey with the BudapestGO app. However, if you’re heading towards Szentendre, you have to purchase additional tickets on the MÁV app or in the ticket offices of MÁV-Start and BKK.

Travellers aiming towards Austria might want to consider other options than Railjets too, since this high-speed rail service operates with limited number of seats. MÁV recommends intercity trains to Szombathely and Sopron as well as the suburban S10 train.