“I’ll buy a car cheaply”: on the border of Russia with Georgia, many got rich

About 3.5 thousand cars are parked in a traffic jam in several rows. It takes three to four days to cross the border.

Businessmen from among local residents took advantage of the situation. About how they are trying to make money on those who urgently want to leave Russia - in the material "MK".

You can no longer get plane tickets to Georgia. There remains only the only land route - the Georgian military road, winding in the mountains. And the only border crossing "Upper Lars", which is located in the gorge.

Until recently, the Russian-Georgian border could only be crossed by vehicle: cars, bicycles or scooters. The same bike gave an important advantage - on it it was possible to bypass the traffic jam on the side of the road and reduce the waiting time for the border crossing.

The bike shops quickly ran out. Local residents quickly realized that they could earn extra money. And they rolled out their rusty, used, iron horses from the barns. The cost of bicycles jumped to 20-25 thousand rubles.

For a place in a crowded minibus, which stood for several days in a general queue, they asked for 10,000 rubles. Those who were ready to shell out a hundred thousand rubles were put on the back seat of a motorcycle, and were taken from the beginning of the traffic jam to the checkpoint.

Now you can cross the border on foot, but you still need to manage to get to Upper Lars. Therefore, the demand for two-wheeled transport is not falling. Telegram channels are full of ads: "For sale a bike." We're calling.

“There are high-speed bikes and ordinary road bikes, with a trunk and a basket, as well as used ones, the price of the issue is from 17 to 30 thousand rubles,” a male voice with an accent answers us.

When we notice that prices are too high, we hear:

- Find cheaper. Now is not the time to bargain.

We find out that now it is really possible to cross the border on foot. But you still need to somehow get to the checkpoint.

“No one can take you there. Will you walk 30 kilometers? In the morning my brother brought ten bicycles, five left. Slow down - there's nothing left at all.

We promise to think about it and call one more ad, where they offer to “take me to Upper Lars without traffic jams.”

“We’ll take a detour around the traffic jams in the mountains, we’ll take you in an hour and a half,” says a woman who introduces herself as Venus. - Get into the traffic jam already at the entrance to the Russian customs. You will be close to the border. Those who are now driving a car through the city will only get to Upper Lars in five days, and you, even if you stand for 8-10 hours, will already be in Georgia.

- What's the fare?

- 15 thousand rubles.

We call on one more phone, they are already asking for 20 thousand for a car. They explain: “It is better to go from Beslan to Vladikavkaz in local cars, otherwise you will be driven to the parking lot, and you will no longer be able to drive either forward or backward. Cars are stopped on the highway because there is a very large congestion of cars.”

At the same time, we are carefully asked to stock up on water and food. It is advised to take bars, muesli, chocolates with you, which take up little space. Local residents, however, are ready to deliver food, gasoline, and cigarettes to any point in the queue. But for triple the price.

Those who stand in line by car report in chats that they traveled 6 kilometers for more than a day. Immediately follows a call to those who are "below" to block the oncoming lane from the payers with a human shield. Closer to the checkpoint, fights happen because of those who are trying to skip the line.

People are losing their nerves. Many telegram channels advertise the sale of a car. For example, "Renault Logan" in 2011 is ready to give for 300 thousand, and then there is a postscript: "bargaining is appropriate." They offer to buy cheap Hyundai Starex, they report that they are 4 kilometers from Lars.

There are many who are ready to buy cars leaving "up to a million rubles." In chats on this topic there is an active correspondence. In numerous announcements, local residents also report that they are ready to store the cars of those who leave for Georgia. We call on one of them - George.

“I’ll come to any point and pick up your car, I have a private house 45 kilometers from Vladikavkaz, a large yard under a canopy, leave contacts, keep it in the best possible way, send a photo and video report,” Georgy convinces us.

— How much does the service cost?

- Five thousand a month.

A lot of people are looking for fellow travelers in chat rooms. Prices "bite". One of those leaving reports that he paid 25,000 rubles for a car from the Mineralnye Vody airport to the border, and is looking for those who can join him.

But, in fairness, it is worth mentioning that among the local residents there are those who are ready to provide shelter to those in need for free. Volunteers unite to deliver water and hot meals to those standing in line.

However, all this may not be useful to everyone soon, because when these lines were written, the authorities of North Ossetia announced that they could restrict entry into the region by cars to citizens without a local registration due to an abnormal accumulation of transit vehicles.

Read the report "What is happening on the border of Russia and Kazakhstan: solvers, cold, volunteers»