YAKUTSK, August 8. /TASS/. Yakutia started a pilot project to transport passengers and goods by Burlak off-road vehicles (ORVs) to hard-to-reach settlements, chairman of the regional branch of Russia's Union of Rescuers Nikolay Nakhodkin told TASS.
"We have agreed with the region's Ministry of Transport and Road Management a joint pilot project to test Burlak off-road vehicles on the route from the town of Udachny to the village of Olenek (located in Yakutia's north-west), as well as from Udachny to the village of Eyik. Should the tests have positive results, the Ministry will present suggestions to the regional authorities regarding the creation of a single passenger company, which will provide services for the transportation of passengers and cargo in the region's hard-to-reach areas," he said.
The team will also try the route between Nakyn, Chukar (the Nyurbinsky District) and Yakutsk, he continued. "It will be for the first time that we will drive these routes in summer [time] in conditions of big waterlogs."
Shortcomings of Northern Supplies
The present Northern Supplies system is based on approaches similar to those used in the Soviet times. "It's got much warmer since then. In the past, it was not a problem to cross the Lena River from Yakutsk by November 7, while now ice crossing opens only by the New Year time. In delivering goods to Northern settlements, that are far from navigable rivers, the term of winter ice roads has shrunk dramatically. This equally applies not only to the Arctic regions," he said.
A group of experts at the Melnikov Permafrost Institute (the Russian Academy of Sciences' Siberian Branch) and the North-Eastern Federal University has developed a winter road stability index in Yakutia until 2050. According to it, in five of the six key areas, the operation of winter roads is subject to an increase in air temperature in the near future.
According to the scientists, the winter road traffic is particularly vulnerable to climate change in Yakutia's Olekminsky and Ust-Maysky districts. In the Olekminsky District, the main winter road connects the district center with Yakutsk. However, it has the shortest operation term and opens at the end of the season.
The authorities are trying to respond to emerging problems by the so-called "green" flights that deliver vegetables to remote settlements. "This is a temporary solution. It is necessary to review the Northern Supplies concept to remote settlements, to stop using Soviet standards. For example, the use of Soviet heavy-duty trucks, when they are morally and physically outdated. Moreover, the off-season and off-road terms have extended. The region lacks a large motor transport company that could be upgraded systematically, where the transport could be maintained, and where new types of transport could be introduced. The Northern Supplies' ground transport is privately owned, and the private owners do not have resources to test new equipment or develop the business," he continued.
On independence from Northern Supplies
Nikolay Nakhodkin for many years managed Yakutia's rescue service and has tested many types of off-road vehicles. "This year, when testing Burlak off-road vehicles during the Safe Arctic exercises of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, I noted a relatively high load capacity - up to 2 tons of cargo and 1.5 tons on a trailer. It's a good load for a small village. During the test, within one day we transported fruits, vegetables, eggs from Yakutsk to the village of Sebyan-Kuel in the Kobyai District in 50-degree frosts. We covered about 3,000 km across the Verkhoyansk Mountains, with no filling stations, no garages, and even no winter roads at times. The cars operated well," he said.
In April, 2023, Yakutia's Ministry of Transport bought a Burlak off-road vehicle for its Ust-Yansk road section. The off-road vehicle has demonstrated good efficiency, and the road section's employees use this vehicle to move along roads where conventional transport is impossible.
"Should this project be successful, the Oleneksky District will no longer be completely dependent on the Northern Supplies and food products will be delivered year-round. If many such vehicles are used, the cost of arranging and maintaining winter roads may be cut. Burlaks could transport not only goods on the national socially important vital food products list, but also passengers, mail and medicines," the expert said.
For example, the time to deliver construction materials by water to Eveno-Bytantaysky village's administrative center - Batagai-Alyt - is about 400 days. "With these vehicles, the delivery term will be four days. It's 100 times faster," he said with confidence.
To maintain and repair those cars, the region will have to establish a single passenger company. "In that case, it will be possible to systematically select and train people. Quite often, biggest mistakes are made when operating off-road vehicles. It is necessary to train specifically drivers of such cars, and only then the vehicles will last for long. Another necessary thing to have is a service center with available consumables and spare parts," he added.
About Burlak off-road vehicles
Burlak off-road vehicles of various modifications, produced in Kurgan, have been operating in the Chukotka, Khanty-Mansi, Yamalo-Nenets, Komi, Yakutia, Krasnoyarsk, Trans-Baikal, Sverdlovsk and Magadan regions, as well as in the Antarctica. The ORVs have passed tests by the Ministry of Emergency Situations, paramilitary structures, and big resource extraction companies.