Makhachkala residents reported numerous problematic roads in the city.

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In addition to Irchi Kazaka Street, where Makhachkala authorities have not filled a pothole for over 170 days, the city has numerous problematic roads. Activists have announced the launch of the "Road Monitor" project, the goal of which is to help officials identify and correct these defects.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," Makhachkala residents complained on February 15 that a pothole on Irchi Kazaka Street has not been filled for 173 days. The head of the Regional Control Center placed responsibility for completing the repairs on the utility company.

The Makhachkala administration reported on its Telegram channel on February 15 that reports about a section of the road being excavated "for several hundred days" were inaccurate. Magomed Abdulkadyrov, head of the City Hall's Administrative and Technical Inspection and Municipal Control Department, reported that the excavation work order was issued to the relevant services for a period of one month. "At this location, scheduled reconnection of consumers to the new gas pipeline is underway. The main work is scheduled by specialized gas services for February 18 of this year. "Immediately after the technical procedures and reconnection are completed, the contractor will begin backfilling and fully restoring the road surface," the publication states.

Makhachkala residents told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on February 16 about a pothole on Irchi Kazaka Street.

The pothole is located at a busy intersection and is a nuisance for drivers, said Irchi Kazaka Street resident Zaur. "To avoid it, you have to move into oncoming traffic. Passing on the right, closer to the sidewalk, is problematic because there is a large pothole there," he said.

"The turn from Gamidova Street onto Irchi Kazaka is very busy because there is a large market and many construction stores there. "Therefore, the pothole is very difficult to drive through, causing traffic jams," noted Abdulla.

Makhachkala residents added that the city has many streets with potholes and ruts that are not being repaired. "There has been a large pothole on Shamil Avenue, near building 162B, for several months," said Ismail. There are also huge potholes on Akhmet-Khan Sultan Street, near the Elite banquet hall, reported Arsen. In the village of Semender, it is impossible to drive normally on Astrakhanskaya Street, said Magaram.

"The pothole on 2-ya Shurinskaya Street, 10 in Makhachkala, is certainly far less popular than the famous pothole at the intersection of Gamidov Avenue and Irchi Kazak Street. But it's much older than that—it's been dug up for a year and a half now, and they left. It's not visible in the photo, but this mass of potholes is deep," Chernovik published an appeal from Makhachkala residents.

A lawyer spoke about the authorities' responsibility for untimely road repairs

Potholes are located throughout Makhachkala's roads. To correct this situation, activists are launching the "Road Monitor" project, Ziyaudin Uvaisov, an activist with the "Our City" movement and head of the "Housing and Utilities Monitor" organization, reported on his Telegram channel.

"We want to help officials find these defects so they can fix them. The law stipulates that the timeframe for correction from the moment of detection ranges from one to 12 days, depending on the importance of the roads. "We want to ensure that city services comply with these standards," Uvaisov said. Lawyer Ali Aliyev told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that the law does not specify precise deadlines for road repairs to correct potholes and uneven surfaces; these are governed by GOST standards, technical regulations, and contracts. Minor defects should be repaired within 5-10 days, depending on the road category, the lawyer noted. He added that failure to promptly repair defects or failure to comply with repair standards is punishable under Article 12.34 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, "Failure to Comply with Road Safety Requirements during Road Construction, Reconstruction, Repair, and Maintenance." Fines are provided for officials of 20,000-30,000 rubles, and for legal entities, 200,000-300,000 rubles. "Complaints can be filed with the traffic police, the mayor's office, or the prosecutor's office, with photographs. An effective method is to submit a complaint to the feedback platform on Gosuslugi, which sets clear deadlines for review, and the responsible authorities are obliged to respond to the complaint. The impact of civic engagement by local residents who post such incidents on social media also doesn't go unnoticed and attracts the attention of officials, who are forced to respond," Aliyev said.

Residents of Dagestani villages complain about lack of roads

On February 15, members of the SVO from Dagestan also complained about road problems. They appealed to the head of the republic, Sergei Melikov, demanding that road construction begin in the village of Kuba in the Laksky District.

"We are from the village of Kuba in the Laksky District of the Republic of Dagestan, participants in a special military operation. We appeal to the head of the Republic of Dagestan. Dear Sergei Alimovich, almost seventy people from our small village went to defend the homeland. Our ancestral village is in dire straits; there are no normal living conditions," the soldier stated.

According to them, the village is only three kilometers from the republican highway, but there is practically no road. "Because of this, a month ago a car fell off a cliff, killing a young villager, the only son in the family. The road reconstruction project has passed all the assessments and received a positive conclusion. However, the decision on construction is continually postponed for unknown reasons," the military noted.

According to the official newspaper of the mayor's office, Makhachkala News, during a personal meeting with citizens, the father of a SVO participant approached the head of Makhachkala, Dzhambulat Salavov. He asked for help with improving an access road by adding fill and grading the dirt road on Pshenichnaya Street in the village of Leninkent. "The request has been monitored. Specialized equipment from the city's housing and utilities department has already begun work; the section being repaired is approximately 400 meters long." "All necessary work will be completed within two days," the mayor's office responded, noting that "the city administration is keeping a close eye on and prioritizing issues related to supporting the SVO participants and their families."

It should be noted that military personnel from Dagestan participating in the SVO periodically record video messages to the republic's authorities asking them to resolve various social and domestic issues. The actions of those who attempt to manipulate participants in the military operation and send them messages asking them to record video messages to the authorities will be strictly suppressed, Sergei Melikov promised in March.

Residents of Dagestan are not the only ones complaining about road problems. In September 2021, the "Caucasian Knot" wrote about Alexander Titov, a resident of Shakhty in the Rostov Region, who had been independently repairing potholes in the city's roads for several years. He says he repairs the road by collecting old pieces of asphalt and bricks. "If it's nearby, I transport everything on a cart I made myself. If the potholes are far away, I transport the material in my Oka," he said.

Titov also reported that he received a letter from the city administration. They warned him against obstructing traffic, saying he "must not damage the road surface or leave trash on the roadway; all of this is administratively punishable, and can result in a fine." "But I have committed no violations." I carry out repairs carefully, do not interfere with the passage of cars, do not leave trash behind and do not damage the roads, but, on the contrary, I repair them. "Well, I was asked to contact the city services department before starting repairs [...] And before that, they sent me letters of gratitude," he shared.

Commenting on the situation, lawyer Evgeny Trifonov said that, according to the law, roads should be repaired by specialists. According to him, road repair is a complex technological process, and an ordinary person "won't be able to acquire good materials, won't be able to repair the road surface properly," Trifonov explained. "The actions of the Shakhty administration are completely justified, since there are requirements, and these requirements must be met [...] because there are safety standards," the lawyer emphasized.