The owner says he can’t take it because of the authorities, the authorities blame the owner

Every year, immediately after the opening of traffic on Transfăgărășan, numerous vehicles appear on the side of the road, most of them very old and worthless, parked intentionally for a long time. These are used for advertising, with phone numbers and services, especially car towing, stuck on them.

Such a machine advertising a company from Avrig specialized in “tractors, excavations and tipping transport” was brought to the editor’s attention by a reader. He noticed that the car was abandoned on Transfăgărășan over the winter, under the action of bad weather becoming a real wreck that pollutes the environment.

“It’s obvious the car was left there on purpose as it has stickers indicating the owner wants to advertise a towing company. This practice is often found on Romanian roads and is extremely harmful. In such situations, these abandoned cars can cause serious damage to the fragile environment of the area.

The harmful reasons are multiple and deserve special attention. The weight of the snow and avalanches caused all of the car’s windows to shatter, leaving the vehicle exposed to the elements and contributing to environmental pollution. The car battery is leaking and affecting the soil and water nearby. Also, there is the risk of oil leaks during the winter, at low temperatures, which can have negative consequences on the soil and biodiversity in the area,” says Octavian M., who sent us the photos.

The Turnul Sfatului reporter spoke with the person who took the car there and left it over the winter. He shows that he is not the only one who does this, during the tourist season there are many cars of this kind, and the biggest battle “is to get to the top first, that’s where the good places are”. He also explains that this advertising pays because he gets calls for towing, but he doesn’t want to specify exactly how many during the summer.

Regarding the car in the photos, the representative of the company specified that “Transfăgărășanul was closed and I didn’t have time to take it down”. At the same time, he assures that “if the people on the roads leave me, I will go after her at any time”.

The representatives of the Regional Directorate of Roads and Bridges Brașov, the administrators of Transfăgărășan, explained to the Council Tower that the weather is very unpredictable during this period in the area and under no circumstances can they make such concessions, which could endanger a person’s life.

As for the advertising cars, road users admit that it is a real phenomenon on Transfăgărșan, which they cannot stop because the car is a private property on which they cannot intervene. Possibly the town hall of Cârțișoara commune, on the model of other town halls that have lifting machines, but this is not the case here.

“CNAIR, as the road administrator, has the obligation to remove only the vehicles abandoned on the road, in accordance with the provisions of GEO 195/2002 regarding traffic on public roads Art. 5 para. 2: The administrator of the public road or, as the case may be, the contractor or the executor of the works is obliged to properly signal, as quickly as possible, any obstacle located on the carriageway, which embarrasses or endangers the safety of traffic, and to take all measures to remove it . In the case of vehicles off the road, if they are really abandoned, the local authorities are the ones who must take action, with the help of the Police, being the only institutions that can identify the owner and, if they find the abandonment, remove the vehicle “, DRDP Brașov officials informed.

The Turnul Sfatului reporter also asked the Sibiu County Police Inspectorate for a point of view. And the police say that as long as they don’t occupy the roadway, they can’t intervene directly, so the town hall, which administers the area, should take measures.

In conclusion, today it snowed on Transfăgărșan, it will probably be several weeks before the road will be reopened to traffic, and the advertising wreckage will be able to be lowered. That is if the owner does not want to benefit from advertising for another tourist season.

Meanwhile a protected area is polluted day by day.

“It is important to emphasize that Transfăgărășanul is closed to public traffic since November 6, 2023, and the area where the abandoned car is located is part of the Valea Bâlii Protected Area. This natural reserve, with an area of ​​180 hectares, was declared a protected area by Law No. 5 of March 6, 2000 and overlaps both the site of community importance – the Făgăraș Mountains and the special avifaunistic protection area – the Făgăraș Piedmont. The Bâlii Valley is characterized by extensive meadows, interspersed with steep ridges, grottoes and rocks, being the habitat of a flora specific to the alpine and subalpine floor of the Făgăraș Mountains. Within this protected area is Lake Bâlea, a lake of glacial origin,” concluded Octavian M., the author of the photos.

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