Russia outlines planned service for checking interregional bus trips

Passengers could eventually check whether an interregional bus service is authorised before buying a ticket, including by scanning a QR code, Transport Ministry official Artyom Yurenkov said on October 14.

The passenger transport control system is being tested using ERA-GLONASS infrastructure. The experiment runs from January 15 to November 1, 2026. Yurenkov spoke at the Public Transport 2026 forum in Moscow, which takes place on October 14–15.

He said the first stage tested electronic applications to register stops, approval of interregional routes and digital decisions by regional authorities. The second stage now uses digital registers and unique identifiers for operators, routes, services and journeys, comparing bus movements with monitoring data.

The ministry expects electronic approvals to halve the time needed to open routes. Regional authorities would receive passenger-flow information for oversight and planning. Yurenkov’s reported remarks did not give a launch date for the passenger QR-code check.