The Moscow region has officially caught up with the capital - however, only in terms of the level of appetite for your wallet.
Do you remember how 13 years ago the mayor of Moscow swore that paid parking was a purely local matter and crossing the third transport ring was not? The legend is fresh, but the laws of physics of bureaucratic promises work differently: the expansion did not just go beyond the third transport ring or the Moscow ring road, but flew into the deep Moscow region.
Welcome to the new reality, where paid parking has come to the village of Monino - and it is, per minute, 23 km from the Moscow ring road and a good 40 km from that very third transport ring.
Moreover, the plan was implemented in true metropolitan style, leaving no chance for drivers to "cheat".
All parking spaces on every corner are now paid.
Attempting to park on the side of the road is immediately punished: absolutely the entire surrounding area is cleared of "no stopping" signs and covered with cameras.
In Moscow, displaced taxi drivers and factory customers block the yards of houses with cars, denying local residents parking spaces near their homes.
Alternatives? It just got deleted. The budget will not fill itself, and to shake money from the drivers for every sneeze is a proven mechanic over the years.
The most "pleasant" thing in this whole story: according to the good old tradition, everything that is successfully tested on Muscovites and residents of the Moscow region is quickly increased throughout the country. So the regions have to prepare. Soon there will be no free streets, just like roads, anywhere.
Honestly - that's the point.
We speak - others remain silent.