In order to regulate the queues of trucks at border checkpoints and to ensure public order at the Lithuanian border, pre-registration in the electronic queue of all goods vehicles leaving Lithuania via the external border of the European Union (EU) will be introduced from the 1st of December. This draft resolution by the Ministry of Transport and Communications was approved by the Lithuanian Government on Wednesday, the 13th of November, reports the ministry.
The introduction of mandatory registration of trucks in an electronic queue is expected to significantly reduce the number of goods vehicles waiting in a live queue to cross the Lithuanian border. The biggest queues of up to 900 trucks, or 23km long, are usually formed in December and April, before the Christmas and Easter holidays.
“Pre-registration of all goods vehicles in an electronic queue is an important measure to improve the overall level of security at the borders with Belarus and Russia and to ensure that kilometre-long queues of trucks do not form at our border checkpoints.
In the current geopolitical context, this is a particularly important issue, which is why we are cooperating closely and are in constant contact with all relevant authorities,” says Marius Skuodis, Minister of Transport and Communications.
All goods vehicles travelling to the border checkpoints of Medininkai, Šalčininkai and Kybartai at the Lithuanian borders with Belarus and Russia will now be required to book their chosen border crossing time slot in advance in the Queue Management Information System (EVIS). If a goods vehicle arrives at the waiting area without having booked a border crossing time slot, it will be able to register for the next available time slot in the EVIS on the spot.
“Goods vehicles arriving at border checkpoints without a reservation of external border crossing time slot in the EVIS will be able to register for the next available border crossing time slot on the spot. Nevertheless, we strongly recommend doing this in advance, before arriving at the border checkpoint, as this would allow much better forecasting of truck flows and better planning of routes and delivery times by transport service providers,” notes Mindaugas Zobiela, Head of the Directorate of Border Crossing Infrastructure.
“In order to protect the Lithuanian population and to reduce other threats from the Belarusian regime, Lithuania has closed four border checkpoints, and the remaining border checkpoints in Medininkai and Šalčininkai periodically started to experience logistical and other problems, hindering not only the carriers, but also the residents of the surrounding areas. Therefore, the resolution drafted by the joint efforts of the institutions and the local authority will allow to address more efficiently the challenges of transport and the population living along the border. Close inter-institutional cooperation between the various institutions is a key factor for the success of the implementation of the resolution, and we are ensuring constant coordination between our institutions and local authorities,” says Vilmantas Vitkauskas, Head of the National Crisis Management Centre.
The Lithuanian Customs, which is responsible for the control of goods leaving Lithuania and the EU via the Lithuanian border, as well as for the enforcement of international sanctions against Russia and Belarus, expects that the electronic registration of trucks will help to regulate the flow of traffic at the Lithuanian border and will also facilitate the control of goods.
“Pre-registration of goods vehicles will help to properly plan the resources of customs officers for the inspection of declarations and goods at customs posts,
taking into account the flow of goods, and thus ensure more efficient control and improve the capacity of customs posts,” says Darius Žvironas, Director General of the Customs Department.
Currently, if all the next available time slots are taken up in the system for the voluntary registration of border crossing, goods vehicles proceed to the border checkpoints and queue up in a live queue. Given the overall level of security at the border, this situation creates a high concentration of goods vehicles, which results in additional threats at the border.
The Directorate of Border Crossing Infrastructure, together with other services, has already taken several measures to regulate the queues of trucks: waiting areas with new showers and toilets are being developed at the border checkpoints in Medininkai, Šalčininkai and Kybartai, road signs are being erected, and police officers are monitoring order at the border.
It is planned that a new waiting area for up to 550 vehicles will also be made available this year in the vicinity of the border checkpoint in Šalčininkai.