Lawmakers Propose Toll-Free Federal Highways for Large Families and People with Disabilities

Russia Proposes Free Highway Travel for Large Families and Disabled Drivers

Members of Russia's State Duma from the A Just Russia party have proposed exempting large families and individuals with disabilities from tolls on federal highways. A letter addressed to Transport Minister Andrey Nikitin is in the possession of RIA Novosti. The initiative was put forward by party leader and Duma faction head Sergey Mironov and Yana Lantratova, chair of the State Duma Committee on Civil Society Development.

In their appeal, the lawmakers call for amendments to road transport legislation as part of efforts to achieve national demographic and social support goals. Mironov noted that his party has long advocated for such benefits and urged the Transport Ministry to back the proposal, suggesting that at least large families and people with disabilities—who already receive public transport discounts—should be granted toll-free travel.

Lantratova added that regional experience demonstrates the effectiveness of transport subsidies, though in Moscow and St. Petersburg, these benefits apply only to public transit and do not address the issue of intercity travel on toll roads. She argued that, given the importance of large families to demographic policy and the existing subsidies for school buses, extending these measures to such families would be logical. Supporting people with disabilities, she said, would be a consistent step in strengthening social protections. According to the committee chair, the proposed measure would ease the financial burden on vulnerable groups and improve road safety by reducing congestion on free, overcrowded routes.