By Vestnik Kavkaza
Three years ago after terrorist attacks in Moscow metro, a complex system of providing security in transport began to be established. Representative of the Department of Transport Security and Special Programs of Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation Yevgeny Nochkin stated that “the program that is accepted will expire in six months. About 70% of the activities contained in the integrated program have been completed. By itself, the complex program is financing the purchase of equipment to ensure our security. But people have to work with the equipment. At the moment, the Ministry of Transport in cooperation with the Interior Ministry and the FSS has proposed amendments to the Federal Law No. 16 "On transport security." It had already been considered in the government and submitted to the State Duma and passed in its first reading. We very much hope that by the end of this year the amendments to the federal law will be adopted, and we will be able to deal directly with the equipment that we plan to install by the end of the year, that is, to complete this part of the comprehensive program, we will be able to hire people.”
“Our country is huge, there are a lot of vehicles, and the whole country cannot become secure at once,” Nochkin admits. “Therefore, everything was originally built for high-risk areas, that is, the central region, the North Caucasus, and by mode of transport - the most dangerous forms of transport in terms of threats - the subway and rail transport. Air transport has been initially quite secure, because generally, when created, aviation safety was taken as a basis for transportation security system, because for many years there have been international standards, as well as in maritime security. And on the basis of this practice, we have created traffic safety in rail and road transport. Aviation security ... After the collapse of the Soviet Union too many commercial firms appeared, and control for some time has been weakened, but every person did what they wanted. Some people had no money. Therefore, wherever possible, as for significant objects, major airports, international airports, of course, the state, the federal budget through a comprehensive program helps to close these gaps, which were formed during the transition period.”
Speaking about the subways, Nochkin said: “Moscow and St. Petersburg do not really see what we do. I say that not very much is seen because of large passenger traffic. We plan to install video cameras in stations and train cars. We plan to establish them everywhere so that we have a completely transparent underground.”
As for maritime transport, there are seaports, and special attention is given to international ports, receiving giant cruise ships and ships with nuclear installations. “We are also looking for the best technical solutions, but they were worked out, they exist, they are only now being developed. We direct everything towards improvement. And there are the waterworks. That is, if you take the accident at the Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station, it was a technical failure, but it was not a terrorist accident, we had allocated the money for this,” Nochkin stated.
Road transport is the hardest area, he thinks: “We still need a very, very long time to work. The program is currently running pilot tests. If you take just the traffic itself, the infrastructure, the money was allocated to the North Caucasus – Moscow and the regions have received this money, bus stations were equipped, control centers were set up, buses were equipped with the GLONASS system and video surveillance systems. As for pilot projects, at the moment there is a test of their effectiveness, and we will sum up the results, and it will be a recommendation to all of our transport companies - how to carry everything out.”
