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14 Detained After Ferries Blocked in Lake Baikal Queue Protest
Residents of Olkhon Island on Lake Baikal were forced to wait hours to cross to the mainland due to tourist traffic. Police detained 14 people after residents blocked the pier with their vehicles in protest.
People living on Olkhon Island, the only inhabited spot on Lake Baikal, depend on ferries to reach the mainland for hospitals, shopping and official business. A busy tourist season that began in mid-July forced island residents to wait for hours in ferry queues.
Locals said they had previously been able to board ahead of tourists by showing registration documents, but that this privilege is no longer honored. In complaints shared on the Telegram channel of Irkutsk Region Governor Igor Kobzev, it was alleged that ferry staff cited a governor’s office decree stating “there will be no separate queue.” However, local outlet “Lyudi Baykala” could not confirm the existence of such a document.
The Irkutsk Region Transport Ministry stated that only minibuses and special service vehicles are allowed to board without queuing, adding that work on priority boarding for island residents is ongoing. With only two of the three ferries operating, waiting times stretched to up to a day due to the influx of tourists. Queues shortened after the third ferry entered service on July 24.
On the morning of July 28, ferry operator “East Siberian River Shipping” announced that services had been halted, explaining that local residents had blocked the ferry entrance with their vehicles. Footage showed more than ten UAZ-brand vehicles blocking the pier. A resident told passengers that they were informed the services were canceled because of fog. Ferry operations resumed about an hour and a half later.
The next day, Irkutsk Region Police reported that 14 people had been detained as “active participants in the incident that led to traffic disruption at the Olkhon Island ferry crossing.” One person was charged with obstruction of transport (Article 20.18 of Russia’s Code of Administrative Offenses), while the others were fined for traffic violations.
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