YAKUTSK, December 20. /TASS/. Yakutia's Governor Aisen Nikolayev during the address to the region's State Assembly ordered officials to keep financing subsidies for Arctic routes in 2025 at the level of subsidies in 2024.
The region began to subsidize Arctic routes in 2012, and since 2022, the program's financing program has been increased by 11 times, thus the program does not have applicable age restrictions, the subsidies are available year-round, and the number of people in the region's Arctic districts liable for the subsidy has increased by 7.6 times - to more than 34,000 passengers.
"Despite all the difficulties, we must not lower the achieved level of support for the Northerners. Thus, II ask the government and parliament, even with all the difficulties our budget has, to bring the air transport subsidies to a level not lower than this year, taking into account the inflation, already in the first half of 2025," the governor said.
Subsidized tickets are available for purchase to residents of the Arctic districts. Those are 13 districts, where about 64,000 people live.
The governor also told the audience about a network of 13 trade and logistics centers due next year. The centers will be used to store shipped products and thus to cut transportation costs, consequently curbing prices for socially important food products.