vlad.tribnet.com / Issue #610 / Special reports / Reading article...

One of Vladivostok’s central areas – Fokina Street running down to the Nabereznaya Bay, traditionally popular among the residents for promenades – is turning into a huge parking lot leaving no space for pedestrians.

The only sign regulating parking in this crowded place is near the prosecutor’s building and it bans only cars that do not belong to the prosecutor’s office. People drive to the Naberezhnaya and park on the sidewalks.

“The area is designed for people to rest with benches and fountains placed here and there but factually it is hard to find space to relax here,” said Nikolai Bezruk, a resident of Primorye’s town of Kamen-Rybolov visiting Vladivostok. “There should be signs prohibiting driving and parking in this district,” he added.

“Any driver knows that it is possible to get to work or home by driving on the sidewalk,” a passer-by who did not identify himself, revealed. “I work not far from here and I could easily park my car on the sidewalk but it is against my conscience,” he said.

Police agree that rules for parking in the city’s central areas should be stricter. Head of Vladivostok’s Public Security Police Department Sergei Gusev recently said fines for parking in prohibited areas should be larger. In the spring and summer months with an increase in the number of cars on Vladivostok streets, the situation with chaotically parked vehicles will become more critical, he warned.

The recreation area of the Naberezhnaya and Fokina Street, known in Vladivostok as the ‘Arbat’ was beatified and officially made a public place for relaxation in 2002. The place received its informal name because of its similarity with Moscow’s Arbat. Prior to 2002, it had been known as the city’s street shopping area.