Despite a forecast rise in border crossings between Estonia and Russia, Estonian bus companies have reported a sharp drop in demand for travel eastwards, with long waits and harsh conditions causing many to postpone or cancel trips.
Carriers attribute the overall decline to fewer Russian citizens and dual nationals traveling home for the holidays.
Daily border crossings have dropped from 1,500 to about 1,000, according to the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA).
Rait Remmel, head of international business at carrier Lux Express, describes this year as unprecedented, saying: “We have never had such a small number of travelers during the New Year period,” looking ahead to a traditionally busy time.
“In mid-December, there were still seats available on buses every day for the holiday period,” he added, a stark contrast to previous years when buses were fully booked by now.
Read more: ERR.EE
