Kazan car owners wait for 'carrot' — parking to be free on Saturdays

“We hope it will revive the businesses”

The city authorities continue innovations in municipal parking lots. Following the “stick” — the installation of wheel boots on cars without license plates, the mayor's office prepared a “carrot” for conscientious car owners. Now parking in municipal parking lots will be free on Saturdays.

“I would like to please conscientious car owners with the news. We only had Sundays free in municipal parking lots. Today it has been decided that both Saturday and Sunday will be free for car owners to park. We hope that this will revive businesses, including during the New Year holidays," said Ilsur Metshin, the mayor of Kazan.

Thus, starting from December 30, parking fees will not be charged on weekends, and on weekdays — before 8 am and after 7 pm. There is no need to pay for parking during the New Year holidays.

Payment for parking spaces has increased by 25%

Deputy head of the executive committee Ildar Shakirov, who oversees transport issues, summed up the results of the operation “Wheel boots” announced by the Mayor's office on December 22 for car owners-freeloaders removing registration plates.

“Already the first days of the raids have shown the high efficiency of the use of wheel boots. The amount of payments immediately increased by 25%, while we now record that 30% of parking spaces have become free and accessible to visitors. During the first three days of the raid, 38 administrative cases were initiated for violating the rules for using municipal parking lots," Shakirov reported.

Two wheel clamps were stolen, one of them was later found in another parking lot. Both violators were identified and taken to police departments, procedural actions are being conducted against them.

Shakirov warned that such measures to combat “auto boors” will only increase. The municipality has purchased an additional number of wheel clamps for this purpose. And Ilsur Metshin added — “it is especially shameful” that most of the plates are removed from expensive foreign cars, for whose owners the amount of payment for parking is scanty.

“I am glad that the overwhelming majority of residents, car owners supported the initiative. We carefully monitor the reaction of our car owners… Everyone is of the same opinion: no one demands anything impossible, the rules are absolutely the same for everyone. And this is, first of all, respect for each other. This is done not for the sake of fines, not for the sake of collecting money. This is an international practice. Unfortunately, there is no other “bicycle” invented. Come up with, our dear car owners, make suggestions, we will be happy to consider. The fact that there are 30% more places in parking lots suggests that the vector is correct, it needs to be continued," the mayor said.

Number of emergency crews has been doubled

Not everyone will have a rest during the New Year holidays. For municipal services, this is the time of round-the-clock monitoring of the city's life support systems. Deputy head of the executive committee Iskander Giniyatullin reported that 56 emergency brigades consisting of more than 250 people and 100 units of special equipment and vehicles will be on duty in housing and resource-supplying organisations of the city. This is 2 times more than on ordinary days.

Scheduled works related to the shutdown of utilities are not provided for the New Year holidays.

On weekends and holidays, the territories and driveways will be cleaned from snow and ice, roofs will be cleaned from snow and icicles, garbage will be removed. According to the standard, snow must be removed within 6 hours after a snowfall, garbage must be removed daily, on pitched roofs the thickness of snow must not exceed 30 cm.

Giniyatullin said that for the safety of residents and the prevention of terrorist attacks, an inspection of the basements and attics of apartment buildings, an audit of locking devices have been carried out. Round-the-clock dispatch communication has been organised.

Special attention of road services will be paid to snow and ice removal, especially on bridges, in underground and aboveground crossings. According to deputy head of the executive committee Igor Kulyazhev, in case of abnormal snowfalls, another 300 snowplows will be added to the existing fleet of 550 vehicles. Besides, pumping equipment has been prepared to prevent flooding of underground passages and generators.

There is also round-the-clock monitoring of outdoor lighting systems, including illumination. Kulyazhev said that the main city New Year tree near Chasha will stand until the old New Year.

The work schedule of public toilets has changed: they are open from 10 am to 10 pm daily, and on New Year's Eve and until January 2 — until 2 am.

Work of public transport during the holidays

On the New Year, public transport in Kazan will work until midnight. On January 1, buses, trolleybuses and trams start their routes at 7 am.

Acting Chairman of the Transport Committee Marat Khisamutdinov said that from December 31 to January 9, urban passenger transport will operate according to the weekend schedule — from 5.30 am to 11.30 pm. The metro will serve passengers from 6.00 am to midnight.

On Christmas Day, January 7, after the end of the festive service, by 2.30 am, a special supply of five buses and one trolleybus will be organised. Passengers will have the opportunity to leave to their places of residence from the Central Stadium stop.

To create a festive mood on the eve of the New Year, the transport enterprises of the city of Kazan decorated the rolling stock and metro stations with festive paraphernalia, Khisamutdinov said.

“In total, 72 units of transport have been decorated, and congratulations sound through auto-informators in the salons of vehicles and at metro stations," he added.

Schedule of medical institutions

Vladimir Zhavoronkov, the deputy minister of healthcare of the Republic of Tatarstan, head of the Kazan healthcare department, reported on the mode of operation of medical institutions. From December 31 to January 9, hospitals, maternity hospitals and gynecological hospitals of the city will be open around the clock, and hospitalisation of patients will be carried out on a territorial basis, depending on the profile of the disease.

Polyclinics of the adult and children's network on December 31, January 3, 5 and 8 work on a Saturday schedule, January 1, 2, 7 and 9 — on holiday and weekend schedules (adults from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm, children — from 9.00 am to 4.00 pm). On these days, on-duty therapeutic teams will work in polyclinics. On January 4 and 6, the polyclinics will receive therapeutic and pediatric teams, specialist doctors of a narrow profile, X-ray rooms, laboratories, emergency rooms, trauma centres and day-time departments will work.

Trauma centres with round-the-clock operation are receiving patients with primary appeals, regardless of the place of residence, all holidays and weekends.

Women's consultations as part of polyclinics and polyclinic departments of hospitals work according to the schedule of polyclinics.

Dental clinics for adults and children will be open all days from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm. Emergency dental care will be provided at Chernyshevsky str., 10/6 from December 31 to January 9 (except January 2) from 4.00 pm to 6.00 am the next day, January 2 — from 9.00 am to 6.00 am on January 3.

Central New Year trees will be guarded around the clock

The head of the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation for the city of Kazan, Alexander Mishchikhin, said that the New Year's events will be held at 115 sites that have been examined for anti-terrorist security. From December 20 to December 31, Spruce Operation is being carried out to suppress the facts of illegal felling and sale of coniferous trees — police officers have already detained 11 violators.

On the eve of the holidays, it has become a tradition to visit dysfunctional families, preventive conversations with parents are held during rounds. As part of the All-Russian campaign “Police Ded Moroz”, children from 70 families registered for preventive maintenance received gifts.

The protection of public order during the holidays will be strengthened by employees of Rosgvardiya, private security companies and municipal employees. Additional posts are provided for patrol and sentry squads. The central New Year tree towns will be guarded around the clock.

Mishchikhin warned that during the long New Year holidays, telephone scammers may become more active, who call, introduce themselves as law enforcement officers and report that a relative is in trouble. Often it is elderly people who swallow their bait, who, in order to help their loved ones, give money to scammers. Mishchikhin advised citizens to be vigilant and not to respond to such calls.