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TALLINN, August 1 (Itar-Tass) —— Estonia has introduced a new order of crossing the state border with Russia which came into effect on August 1.
Under the new rules people crossing the state border in a vehicle are to register in a queue beforehand and pass through the waiting zone before crossing into Russia.
A traveler might notify about the time of crossing the state border on the Internet or by phone 90 days prior to a planned visit. All transport vehicles, except buses from a regular bus service, should be registered in an e-mail queue. Officials in a nearby waiting zone verify information about preliminary bookings and an initial point from where a transport vehicle was moving in the direction of the state border.
Naturally, it takes time to get accustomed to a new system, but people who arrived at the state border knowing nothing about the new rules will not be left in trouble, Estonian Interior Minister Ken-Marti Vaher told journalists. It is possible to cross the state border without being booked beforehand, he said. One is to arrive at the waiting zone and join a general queue, the minister added.
The new order was introduced to help solve an age-long problem of long queues on the Estonian -Russian border.