The agency has begun identifying and notifying abandoned vehicle owners at the border checkpoint, which had started to resemble a used car garage forecourt, on arriving from either side of the border.

Many of the vehicles are parked on overspill sites since the official parking lot, with space for around 30 cars, is often full. When "Aktuaalne kaamera" visited, many cars even within the official zone had Transport Administration notices fixed to the windscreen stating that their vehicle had been parked for more than 72 hours.

From next month, the Transport Administration will start dealing with any vehicles not removed, by towing them away or even selling them off or scrapping them, in the case of unclaimed cars.

Minister of Infrastructure Kuldar Leis (Reform) said it was "now possible, in connection with the amendment to the Waste Act, to take them to a paid car park or, in the case of wrecks that are environmentally hazardous and whose owner cannot be identified, either scrap or sell them. The main component is cars with Estonian license plates, but also Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Ukrainian [plates] can be seen. Where it is possible to identify the owner, the Transport Administration has also written to those owners."

The Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) has so far this year carried out nearly 50 summary proceedings in relation to illegally parked vehicles, but has not yet towed away a single vehicle.

The Transport Administration can now fulfill this role. "These cars will be taken to a paid car park, and then, if the owner shows up, they must then pay the parking fee and then can get their car back. If the owner does not appear, then it will be agreed on when the car will be sold or scrapped," Leis went on.

The Transport Administration will start towing away vehicles from September, and its own budget is covering the work.

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