Traffic Jam at Upper Lars Checkpoint Due to Trucks from Russia

The traffic jam at the Upper Lars checkpoint is caused not by exports from Armenia, but by cargo vehicles from Russia heading to Armenia and other countries. This was reported by Anna Ohanyan, spokesperson for the Minister of Economy.

The issue arises because transporters are violating technical regulations by overloading vehicles beyond the permissible limits set by the Russian government.

"The problem primarily lies in the inconsistency of the cargo loads with the prescribed norms of overload," said Anna Ohanyan.

Addressing reports regarding fines imposed at the checkpoint, our interlocutor noted that the amounts depend on the degree of overloading. It is worth mentioning that violations of technical standards have been revealed by the Russian Customs Service. The queues of cargo trucks are currently predominantly within Russian territory.

The Ministry of Economy of Armenia is keeping the issue under close observation, and they are in contact with partners at the Upper Lars checkpoint.

"Partners at the Upper Lars checkpoint note that the issue is not only with Armenian drivers and assure that there are trucks carrying cargo from other countries in the queue as well," said Ohanyan.

As for the exported cargo from Armenia, in order to prevent potential issues at the Upper Lars checkpoint, the Ministry of Economy is considering the option of pre-checking the compliance of exported goods with the overload norms at the border.

Reports have emerged in the media indicating that the queue of transporters has reached near the city of Pyatigorsk in Russia. Armenian drivers waiting in line assert that Russian customs officers are imposing unjustified fines ranging from 100,000 to 300,000 rubles. The complaining drivers mentioned that they have been waiting for around 10 days to cross the border, and during this time, they are forced to pay 500 rubles daily for parking.