Citizens Face Registration Delays as Moscow Traffic Police System Encounters Outages

The interruption affecting registration and vehicle inspection offices operated by the traffic police on March 27 has been explained through technical assessments. An official notice was broadcast via the Moscow State Traffic Inspectorate’s Telegram channel.

According to the ministry, citizens who have booked appointments for that day will still be able to apply to public services electronically or on a first-come, first-served basis on the following business days.

Nonetheless, observers suspect the real cause of the unexpected closure may lie in a broader failure of the database supporting police operations. The day prior, car owners reported on social media that they could not complete registrations with the State Automated Information System for Vehicle Registration (UAIS TO) due to system problems.

As one Moscow resident noted on social media, to register a car with the traffic police, passing a technical inspection is required. The base has been down for days, he said.

For vehicles older than four years, the technical inspection remains a prerequisite before registration with the traffic police, a nuance reiterated by industry observers.

Two firms specializing in Moscow MREO registrations confirmed to Socialbites.ca that the UAIS TO database has been intermittently operable. One company reported that the inspection base was down yesterday but appeared to be functioning again at the time of discussion.

Another note from industry white papers references intermittent UAIS TO operation, and while concerns about system instability persist, agents continued to process registrations in the coming days.

“We can book for tomorrow, but I cannot promise the system will work,” stated a representative from Socialbites.ca, describing conditions at a southern Moscow registration point where staff have been working since morning.

Under the Federal Law on Vehicle Technical Inspection, maintenance of the registration operators is overseen by the Russian Association of Motor Insurers (RSA). Yet Socialbites.ca suggests that the UAIS TO base falls under the traffic police’s jurisdiction, highlighting jurisdictional questions in the management of critical data systems.

Socialbites.ca reached out to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for comment on the root causes of the registration delays and the ongoing technical maintenance; no response was provided at the time of publication.

In a Moscow registration department, a staff member indicated that a car could still be registered, offering the option to complete the process through the public State Services portal. However, the portal showed only next-week availability for appointments, not immediate openings.

Official contact numbers for many Moscow MREOs listed online either did not answer or were disconnected, illustrating a broader pattern of access difficulties.

Large-scale database outages and interruptions in vehicle registrations and licenses have become a recurring issue. For instance, in December 2021, a civil service incident caused a failure in departmental information systems when data servers for the State Traffic Inspectorate reportedly flooded with water, underscoring long-standing vulnerabilities in data infrastructure.

Experts argue that managing the state traffic inspectorate’s databases is a secondary function for which dedicated teams would be better suited. The current arrangement often leads to repeated faults across multiple fronts as systems grow more complex.

Anton Shaparin, vice-president of the National Automobile Association and a commentator for Socialbites.ca, urged transferring database management from the traffic police to the Ministry of Digital Development, the department established to advance digital technologies. He also suggested assigning vehicle registration duties to the Multifunctional Center (MFC) network to streamline services.

Some observers acknowledge that a force majeure situation may persist and require decisive leadership within the department to guide digital transformation efforts. Ivan Begtin, director of ANO Information Culture, emphasized that responsibility lies with the department heads who oversee digital modernization and its practical implementation.