October 1 marks the beginning of the winter season for street maintenance, and Tallinn must have contracts in place with road maintenance providers.

However, the procurement process has been suspended as one of the largest service providers has contested tender conditions. At present, only one city district is in the clear.

"As of now, the first of these contracts has been signed, which is a supplementary maintenance agreement for Mustamäe District. On a positive note, we can say that the cost per square meter for cleaning came in significantly lower than we had forecasted," Mayor of Tallinn Jevgeni Ossinovski (SDE) told "Aktuaalne kaamera."

This year's winter road maintenance budget is approximately €11 million and the city is responsible for cleaning all roads.

In North Tallinn alone, an additional 127,000 square meters must be maintained, totaling €4 million. The tender has received criticism over both technical specifications and the suitability of the work.

"In addition to the large scope of work, our streets and sidewalks are quite narrow, especially in older neighborhoods, where the sidewalks are also crowded with traffic signs, streetlights, staircases going up and down, flowerpots. There's a significant amount of manual labor involved. It's also been pointed out that the preparation time given to service providers was too short. The objections are long and extensive, and we're currently focused on responding to them," said North Tallinn District Elder Külli Tammur (Eesti 200).

Despite the dispute process, proceedings are moving forward and it is hoped contracts will be signed by the end of next week. In the meantime, the city is looking for interim solutions.

"It may be October 1, but nothing says it could not snow on October 5. We are currently looking into the possibility of negotiating with our existing contractors, such as those who have typically maintained the side roads near Stroomi Beach," Tammur said.

Tallinn mayoral candidate and forrmer mayor Mihhail Kõlvart (Center) said the city cannot manage all of the winter maintenance on its own. Past experience with smaller volumes has already shown how service providers struggled.

"In winter, they do not have the resources they need, and unfortunately, the city has created the illusion that it's possible to keep all streets and pedestrian paths clean. That's not going to happen. It's not physically possible, but likely the current city government won't be the one held accountable," said Kõlvart.

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