Travelling by Car
DRIVING IN BELARUS:STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTION
1. Explore the basic road checkpoints and choose the best route.
2. Make provision of all the necessary documents for the car.
Foreign citizens and stateless citizens who are temporarily staying or residing in the Republic of Belarus, when driving a motor vehicle must have:
- driver's license of international standard;
- vehicle registration certificate;
- permission of communication agency to use radio and satellite communication devices, if any on the vehicle;
- insurance policy (if the vehicle is registered outside the Republic of Belarus, its owner must sign a Green Card insurance contract for this vehicle with one of the insurance companies of the country, authorized to effect such contracts. If the driver doesn’t have a Green Card, he has to sign a contract of border insurance with one of the insurance companies of the Republic of Belarus upon entry to its territory. The time for processing the policy usually doesn’t exceed 10 minutes).
Registration plates on the car must be issued by the competent authority of the state where the car is registered.
3. Do not forget that the process of passing the state border by vehicles includes the implementation of border, customs, and if necessary, quarantine, veterinary, phytosanitary and other controls. Upon crossing the border, the driver must include the vehicle information in the customs declaration.
TOLL ROADS
The owners (users) of vehicles from the Customs Union (Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan) are free from paying road fees for the road M-1/E30 Brest (Kozlovichi) — Minsk — Russian border. All others owners of cars which are not higher than 210 cm have to pay €3 at each of the four toll booths (TBs):
- TB “Fedkovichi” (35 km)
- TB “Kolosovo” (295 km)
- TB “Krupki” (468 km)
- TB “Redki” (609 km)
The rates of the charge for highway M-1/E30 at toll booths (from January 1, 2012) for vehicles higher than 210 cm:
- two axes: for foreigners — €5 at each of the four toll booths, for car owners from the Customs Union — €4;
- three axes: everyone, except for Belarusian car owners — €10;
- four axes: for everyone, except for Belarusian car owners — €15.
- the fee for non-residents of the Republic of Belarus will be charged in Euros or U.S. dollars or Russian rubles in equivalent.
Belonging of a vehicle is determined by the country where the registration plate was issued. Vehicles of foreign states include:
- vehicles with temporary (transit) registration plates issued in foreign countries;
- vehicles with no registration plates.
PECULARITIES OF DRIVING ON BELARUSIAN ROADS
While in Belarus, drive on the right side.
Traffic signs are of international standard. The majority is in Cyrillic alphabet (Russian alphabet). However, the signs on the main transport nodes are also repeated in the Latin alphabet (English alphabet).
Speed limits: 60 km/h (37 miles / h) — in towns, 90 km/h (55 miles/h) — outside towns. Exception — certain areas where there’s a speed limit of 120 km/h (75 miles/h).
Radar speed control is popular in Belarus. In addition, automatic overspeed control cameras are installed on some motorways (especially on M-1/E30).
Traffic police of Belarus — the State Automobile Inspection (abbreviated in Russian — ГАИ, in Belarusian — ДАI). Traffic police inspectors have uniforms with yellow reflective stripes.
The driver is obliged to stop upon demand of a traffic police inspector in uniform. This requirement must be made by a signal pole, hand gesture, using a loudspeaker device or by turning on the red light on the vehicle of operational designation. During night-time outside populated areas there should be a vehicle of operational designation next to the traffic police officer with a switched on flashing light.
The use of any amount of alcohol (including beer) when driving is prohibited on the territory of Belarus. Upon demand of a traffic police inspector, drivers should be examined in order to determine the level alcohol or drug intoxication.
The driver is not allowed to use radio and telephone communications, not equipped with a hands-free device when driving. The driver shall be buckled up, and carry buckled up passengers when driving a car equipped in prescribed manner.
There are 45 points of emergency communication with the dispatcher of road service on the road M-1/E30, using which you can call the state automobile inspection, emergency call or technical service.
MOTORWAY SERVICE
The distance between the roadside meal stations is 30-60 km.
Service stations (СТО) along busy roads are usually located at a distance of not more than 80 km from each other, resting areas — at a distance of 100-150 km. A typical Belarusian motorway service usually includes a gas station (АЗС) with a small shop.
FUEL
Petrol stations are located on busy roads at the average distance of 30-40 km from each other, on less busy roads — at a distance of 50-60 km.
At petrol stations and gas stations the fuel of the following brands is sold:
- automobile gasoline Normal-80;
- automobile gasoline AI-92-10 (environmentally advanced, with low sulfur and benzol content);
- automobile gasoline AI-95-Euro;
- diesel fuel EN 590;
- diesel fuel “Arctic” EN 590;
- biodiesel fuel EN 590;
- autogas.
Since the middle of 2012 diesel fuel of European quality standard Euro-5 can be purchased at Belarusian petrol stations.
Belarusian Transport Insurance Bureau
