New lines will connect Sofia and Athens, Burgas and Istanbul, as well as Romania with the Bulgarian Black Sea coast
And this year, the passenger technology company FlixBus will continue to expand its network in Bulgaria to offer an affordable and sustainable alternative for the summer season. In order to meet the growing demand, from June there will be daily trips between Sofia and Thessaloniki. In addition, the first connections to Athens are now available on the FlixBus network.
Passengers will be able to book tickets to Athens through the FlixBus website and app. Relations with Turkey will be expanded for the summer period with the launch of a new line from Burgas to Istanbul. During the summer months, FlixBus also increases its offers from Romania to the Bulgarian Black Sea coast by introducing new connections to Balchik and Albena, in addition to the already popular ones to Varna, Sunny Beach and Golden Sands. Bulgarian passengers traveling to Europe will also be able to benefit from more destinations with direct flights to Osijek and Dresden.
“FlixBus makes sustainable travel convenient, accessible and easy to use for everyone. We are happy to be able to expand connections every year and offer new travel options. By increasing the number of destinations available, we hope to contribute to a change in the way which people travel, considering their impact on the environment,” said Petar Bankov, Director of the Sofia Knowledge Hub, FlixMobility’s expert center in Sofia.
While passengers changing their approach to travel and moving towards collective transport play a crucial role, transport companies also have a duty to support this transition by enabling people to travel more easily, especially in regions with limited connections. In 2023, Flix provided scheduled connections to more than 5,600 destinations on four continents, a third of which had populations of less than 20,000.
On Earth Day, Flix published its second voluntary ESG report, revealing its short-term goals to reduce emissions while highlighting the environmental benefits of collective travel. With over 81 million passengers in 2023, the company promotes sustainable and accessible travel for all, thanks to a comprehensive ESG strategy underpinning its business. With the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) validating Flix’s short-term emission reduction targets, and following significant progress over the past year, Flix looks to the future with confidence.
“We are committed to transforming long-haul travel globally. With eleven years of experience as a global travel technology company transforming the sector through our consistent, robust vision, we aim to be a driving force towards a sustainable future. Sustainability will remain guiding principle along this path, with an emphasis on protecting the environment and creating value for our partners and the communities we serve,” commented Andre Schwemlein, CEO and co-founder of Flix.
Flix analysis quantifies emissions benefits of collective travel Collective transport is a key lever for making travel more sustainable. To quantify this benefit, Flix compared the emissions of several modes of transport and calculated huge carbon savings per passenger-kilometre over the past year. According to the analysis, over 1 million tonnes of CO2 were saved in 2023 alone thanks to passengers choosing Flix services over other modes of transport such as car or plane. Along with over 1 million tonnes of carbon emissions saved thanks to passengers choosing Flix over other modes of transport, another key factor in Flix’s environmental performance is the fact that almost all Flix buses (98%) in Europe are equipped with the latest EURO VI efficiency standard.
Locally, in the Romania-Bulgaria region, Flix passengers have managed to save 18,310 tonnes of CO2 by choosing FlixBus over other modes of transport. The emission factor of Flix buses is 27.8 g CO2 e/passenger km, almost nine times lower than that of airplanes (238 g CO2 e/passenger km) and almost six times lower than traveling by private car (166 g CO2 e/passenger km).
As part of its decarbonisation strategy, Flix is committed to achieving carbon neutral operations by 2040 in Europe and by 2050 globally. The company has set short-term emission reduction targets with the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) to assess its progress within a scientifically recognized framework.
SBTi provides guidance for companies to set targets for reducing greenhouse gases in order to combat climate change and achieve net zero emissions by 2050. SBTi confirmed Flix’s short-term targets, thereby recognizing that its strategy is in line with global climate goals.
Flix has set a target to reduce its absolute Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 54.6% by 2032[3]d. This includes the greenhouse gas emissions directly and indirectly generated by Flix related to the consumption of electricity, steam, heat or cooling, as well as the fuel consumption of its own fleet. In addition, Flix aims to reduce its Scope 3 emissions by 40.9%, which includes the emissions generated by its partners’ buses per passenger-kilometre.
