Deputy Director for Economics and Finances of the North-Western Basin Branch Nadezhda Kalashnik took part in the III Interantional Innovation Forum of Passenger Transport “Smart Transport 2017” that was held at the Expoforum exhibition center in St Petersburg on October 18-20, 2017.

Among the key topics at the forum were digitalization of transport, IT implementation in transport services, the development of environmental transport with the use of alternative energy sources, the preparation of the city transport infrastructure for 2018 FIFA World Cup and the development of cruise and ferry navigation.

The forum focused on organizing a basic platform for demonstrating innovation and developing expert solutions in the field of passenger transport, as well as contributing to attracting private investments in the sector.

During a round-table discussion, “Tourist Inflow Increase on Ferry and Cruise Services to/from St Petersburg”, organized by the Transport Committee and the Committee for Tourism Development in St Petersburg, Nadezhda Kalashnik gave a report entitled “Measures of State Support for Ferry Service by Regulating Harbor Dues”.

She noted in her report that passenger turnover in the seaports of Big Port St Petersburg and Passenger Port St Petersburg remained rather high. In the meantime, gross registered tonnage of vessels, which call at terminals of the seaport of Passenger Port St Petersburg, is increasing.

In her report Nadezhda Kalashnik stressed: “In order to support and develop ferry service in St Petersburg, while forming the tariff policy in respect of passenger vessel calls the North-Western Basin Branch has used differentiated approaches toward levying harbor dues that create conditions for further growth of calls by cruise and ferry passenger vessels at the seaports of the northern capital.”