OREANDA-NEWS. October 15, 2009. Transit through Belarus fell 23% on the year in January-August 2009 to 502,000 vehicles, the chairman of the Belarusian Association of International Road Carriers (BAIRC), Alexander Soloschev, said during the Belarusian Transport Congress.

“Polish carriers cut transit through Belarus 21.7% on the year, Lithuanian carriers 34%, and Russian carriers 14.7%. Belarusian carriers were also faced with a drop in demand for their services – they transported 1.4 million tonnes of freights in the first six months, down 20% year-on-year,” Soloschev said.

“In 2009, many carriers decided to give up plans to renew the fleet of vehicles. The number of imported vehicles for international carriage fell 80%, and acquisitions of domestically-made vehicles have fallen. As a result, the share of new vehicles [younger than three years] has fallen to 31% from 33% in 2008,” he said.

Soloschev noted an improvement in the situation over the past few years. “Currency proceeds increased in June over the May level, and in July 2009 currency proceeds rose 1.2% on the year,” he said.