Illegal passenger transport in Montenegro is not slowing down: more innovative than before and harder to detect

Illegal passenger transport practically imitates scheduled transport in both international and domestic traffic, say the transport association

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Milan Stanović, Photo: Printscreen/YouTube/TV Vijesti
Milan Stanović, Photo: Printscreen/YouTube/TV Vijesti
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

The fact that the intensity of illegal passenger transport in Montenegro is not decreasing is also evidenced by the fact that in the past three years, the Road Traffic Inspectorate has issued around 2900 misdemeanor orders worth a total of around one and a half million euros.

Illegal passenger transport in Montenegro is nothing new, it's just that it's more innovative and harder to detect. Legal transporters, passengers, and the state coffers suffer because of this, say the Ministry of Transport.

"This phenomenon is present in both directions, in taxi transport and in non-routine transport, and least in bus-routine passenger transport. The largest number of illegal transporters has been recorded in the largest urban centers such as Budva, Bar, Herceg Novi and so on, as well as at the Podgorica and Tivat airports," Nikola Veljović, on behalf of the Ministry of Transport, said on "Boje jutra" for TV Vijesti.

"According to the reports we receive, there is a growing trend of foreign illegal transporters in Montenegro, such as Russians, Ukrainians and Turks who carry out illegal transport with their vehicles in Montenegro, thereby affecting the transport market in Montenegro. The trend has intensified and the number of such transporters is increasing," he added.

However, there are only five road traffic inspectors in the field who control the work of transporters.

Illegal passenger transport practically imitates regular transport in both international and domestic traffic, say the transporters' association.

"We can see a large number of advertisements on Instagram and Facebook where they provide classic scheduled transportation. They literally drive in front of our participants who drive certain routes. They start 3-4 minutes ahead of them to pick up passengers, so it is very pronounced and we have a big problem with it," said Milan Stanović from the NGO "Klaster prevoz".

Stanović believes that certain state institutions are also giving a boost to illegal transportation in Montenegro.

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