Fears Accumulation of Car Wrecks at the Norwegian Border With Russia
The parking lot outside Storskog is intended for unloading freight transport and where travelers who take buses to Russia park their cars. (Archive photo: Arne O. Holm)
The Finnmark Police fear that the Storskog Border Station will turn into a car cemetery. They have asked the Norwegian Public Roads Administration for advice.
"It is not a problem at the moment, but we have had cases where cars have been left for a long time in the parking lot outside Storskog," says Ingrid Lune, head of the Storskog border crossing point at the Norwegian border with Russia.
In a letter to the Norwegian Public Roads Administration, the Finnmark Police write that they see a development they do not like:
"As a result of sanctions against Russia, export restrictions and closed border crossings elsewhere in Europe, we are currently seeing some traffic that we would not otherwise have. Among them, we are getting some EU/EEA-registered vehicles, which have been temporarily imported into Russia, and therefore have to leave Russia after a year to once again be temporarily imported. As a consequence of this, we are seeing vehicles that are temporarily/permanently deregistered in their own country, lack EU control, and/or are in an irresponsible technical condition."
Unsure
The parking lot outside Storskog is intended for unloading freight transport and for travelers to park their cars before taking a bus over to Russia. Therefore, the police want to get ahead in clarifying the regulations around this, says Lunde to HNN.
The letter further states that the police are unsure whether they should remove the licence plates of these cars when they enter into Norway and the Schengen area.
The licence plates can be removed
The Police writes:
"We do not want a practice to establish itself at Storskog in which any wrecked vehicle can enter and turn around in the Storskog control area, as we cannot physically deny them entry into Norway after an entry check. Incidents could occur there or in the Skorskog area in which uninsured vehicles are involved."
New problem
For the Norwegian Public Roads Administration, this is a new issue. If this becomes a problem, the agency must follow up with controls, says Office Manager Roger Furumo. He is familiar with the letter from the Finnmark Police.
Furumo continues:
"If the vehicles are in such poor technical conditions or lack permits to drive on Norwegian roads, the licence plates can be removed."
Overall, this is about traffic security, says Furumo.
