Trucks closed the passage on the Crimean bridge: truckers described the situation

When a storm warning starts at the ferry crossing, queues form

The traffic on the restored lanes of the Crimean bridge was solemnly opened. However, for now, only passenger cars will be able to drive on it, as repairs continue. Trucks are not allowed on the bridge. According to Acting Minister of Transport of Crimea Nikolai Lukashenko, the issue of opening the Crimean bridge for large-tonnage transport and trucks will not be raised at least until the end of the year.

The trucks that have accumulated in the parking lots of the Krasnodar Territory have two options for getting to the peninsula: a ferry crossing and a detour through the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions.

The ferry crossing is not the most reliable route now. In autumn and winter, ferries are constantly forced to stand idle due to storms, and this situation cannot be changed. The last time the ferry was canceled due to waves and wind was this weekend, creating huge queues at the parking lots of the Krasnodar Territory. According to media reports, several hundred cars have accumulated there. A large congestion of cars is reported in the port of Kavkaz due to a storm warning in the Kerch Strait, which continues to this day.

Officials offer a backup option – through the new regions of Russia. According to Nikolai Lukashenko, the overland route operates around the clock, is safe and does not depend on weather conditions. However, there are not very many people who want to go on such a difficult and long detour.

Due to downtime of heavy trucks in the Crimea, prices for food and essential goods have increased. Approximately 50% of food has risen in price: these are meat, dairy and perishable goods that the peninsula receives from the mainland.

Experts note an increase in prices by about 10%, and this is due not only to logistics problems, but also to the time of year: by the New Year, products always rise in price a little. But vegetables and fruits, on the contrary, are falling in price, which is due to supplies from new subjects of the Russian Federation – Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. The situation with price fluctuations will be smoothed out by the creation of wholesale and logistics centers on the peninsula.

“Freight transport is not allowed on the bridge,” trucker Sergey told MK. “And they say that they will let it on the bridge only when the second part is repaired.”

– Are vans and Gazelles allowed?

– Gazelles, yes, but because of them, a huge queue has already formed, because the demand for such vehicles immediately increased. What is from the side of the Crimea, what is from the side of Taman

– Are truck drivers experiencing inconvenience?

We have been without work for two months. Someone spat and went through Melitopol, Mariupol. My friend stayed at home from October 8 to November 5. As a result, I went through the Zaporozhye region. But this is more dangerous, and more expensive, and more inconvenient.

“I just returned from there, 3.5 hours in line for inspection from the mainland,” says Ksenia, a resident of Kerch, who drove her car across the Crimean bridge. “There is a huge traffic jam from Gazelles and similar cars from the Crimean side.”

– Is it difficult to check cars?

– You carry suitcases on the belt, and passengers pass through the arch – like at the airport. The car is inspected visually – interior, trunk, under the hood. If the person is alone, not loaded, without suitcases, then only a visual inspection.

– How long does it take?

– If there is no queue – cases for five minutes. And with the queue, as it is now, you can spend several hours on inspection. This happened before – we once stood for four hours from the side of the mainland. Judging by the fact that many people in Crimea cannot receive parcels for weeks, mail is also queuing. A friend was waiting for a parcel from the Mineralnye Vody for almost a month …