OREANDA-NEWS. As of 01.08.2011, Estonia will introduce a new arrangement for crossing the border with the Russian Federation. In accordance with the new arrangement

The new electronic booking system can be used by anyone who wishes to cross the border, regardless of the country of residence or the type of the transport vehicle. Furthermore, before crossing the border all transport vehicles shall pass a waiting area, where the booking is verified or, alternatively, where the vehicle is registered in the general queue.

To book the border crossing time in advance, it is necessary to either access the internet address www.estonianborder.eu, or call the Booking Centre at +372 6 989 192. If you haven’t  booked a time in advance, you can register youself in the general queue on arrival at the waiting area situated in the immediate vicinity of the border checkpoint.

In 2011, the fee charged for booking the border crossing is 1 euro plus the fee for the services in the waiting area; the amount of the latter fee depends of the particular waiting area and the category of the transport vehicle. Booking shall become effective after the payment is made.

The new system will be introduced to ease the situation of long queues at the border with the Russian Federation, which has been posing a problem for Estonia for many years. The new system will not reduce the queue, in as much as the speed of crossing the border depends on the number of persons wishing to do so, and on the swiftness of the operations at the border checkpoints of the two countries. However, the new system allows to book the intended border crossing in advance and to arrive at the border checkpoint by the said time. As a result of this the travellers and drivers of transport vehicles can better plan their time and avoid long queuing to cross the border on the first-come-first-serve basis.