Vitebsk traffic police will issue memos for drivers about the speed limit on the border with Russia

To ensure that reckless drivers violating traffic regulations in the neighboring country do not evade responsibility, and that motorists do not find themselves in unpleasant situations due to ignorance of the law, the State Automobile Inspectorate of the Vitebsk region intends to strengthen informational cooperation with colleagues from the border Russian regions.

These issues were discussed in Vitebsk at a meeting of the heads of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee and representatives of the Internal Affairs Directorates for the Pskov and Smolensk regions.

Police officers from the Vitebsk, Pskov, and Smolensk regions have been cooperating for many years. During this time, extensive experience has been accumulated in conducting joint special operations and preventive measures, including those related to road safety.

Russians who violate the speed limit in Belarus have been fined for a long time. As a rule, our traffic inspectors stop reckless drivers at the border. There, the offender is obliged to pay the fine before leaving the territory of the country. Moreover, if a person has been caught by surveillance cameras 5 or 10 times, they will pay as many fines.

And one more important nuance. If, for some reason, a driver crosses the border without paying, they will be obliged to do so during their next visit to Belarus. And it does not matter who is driving at that moment: the owner of the "fined" car or their acquaintance who borrowed the car for a ride. The person driving at the time of the stop will be fined.

This mechanism, according to the head of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Igor Evseev, is well-established and operates effectively in Belarus:

— Similar rules are in effect in Russia. However, most of our motorists believe that if a Pskov or Smolensk traffic police officer draws up a report on a traffic violation, and the driver manages to cross the border without paying the fine, they will be forgotten. Nothing of the sort! Russian legislation is even stricter in this regard. If during a repeat visit to Russia it turns out that the offender has an unpaid fine, our compatriot may even be arrested for 10 days.

According to police officers, about 80 percent of our motorists are unaware of these nuances. Therefore, at a meeting with colleagues from Smolensk and Pskov, Igor Evseev instructed the leadership of the traffic police department of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee's Internal Affairs Directorate to develop memos that will contain all this information. The memos will be distributed to drivers at border crossing points. Which specific services will be involved in this is yet to be determined.

This measure, according to police officers, will contribute to Belarusian motorists behaving more disciplined and cautiously on the roads of the border Russian regions.

Similar memos are also planned to be compiled regarding goods from Europe that fall under sanctions in Russia.

Decisions on these and other areas of interaction were included in the final trilateral document drawn up during the meeting in Vitebsk.

Sergey Golesnik, SB Belarus Today