Illegal parking and improperly stopping to pick up and drop off is about to become much more of a dangerous game in the City of Rijeka...

If you've spent any time in Croatia at all, particularly on the coast, you'll have noticed that being able to park is a rare commodity, and when you do think you've finally found a parking place after driving around for twenty minutes, it's either been taken by a previously unseen Smart car or by someone who has kindly decided to take up two spaces instead of one with his battered old Volvo with ten parking tickets stuck to the windshield.

This is just one of the ''charms'' of summer on the Croatian coast, but it seems that the powers that be have finally had enough of poor parking skills, and a new scheme with heavy fines is coming into play, starting with Rijeka.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 21st of August, 2019, five cameras which will operate 24 hours per day will now be responsible for filming the parking situation in the City of Rijeka.

As of August the 15th in Rijeka, five brand new cameras will be playing the role of Big Brother and are ready and waiting to punish those responsible for illegal and improper parking and stopping in Rijeka's city centre, and heavily.

Many people in Rijeka have long complained of improper parking and stopping to pick up and drop off, as bus stops and delivery venues are often crowded with cars, for which they're of course not intended.

Rijeka's five new 24-hour cameras will now take care of the parking situation in in Adamićeva, Fiumara, on the Riva and along Ulica Ivana Zajca instead of the communal officers. The cameras will work as a replacement for the communal officers who simply can't even manage to deal with and properly sanction all perpetrators, reports HRT.

The cameras will record the offense, traffic officers will verify the offense, and the owner's data will be obtained from MUP. A fine of 300 to 700 kuna will then be sent to the driver's home address.

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We reported recently on the new road toll system coming to Croatian motorways, and it seems that when this brand new system is implemented, each motorway user will have to register themselves via a user account (via the internet or via the application) and road tolls will be paid either by credit card or be postpaid. The powers that only inspectors currently have, will be passed onto cashiers via a new law.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Josip Bohutinski/VL writes on the 13th of July. 2019, as of the year 2022, road tolls on Croatian motorways will be paid in a contactless manner and without the need for the vehicle to stop.

Among the key features of this new road toll collection system, which were officially presented yesterday at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, are the free passage of vehicles without stopping to make payments, toll payment through ENC or DSRC devices.

As Vecernji list writes, using ENC devices will become compulsory for large (heavy) vehicles, while light vehicle users will have the option to choose - toll payment by ENC or via the automatic reading of the vehicle's registration plate. It is estimated that the implementation of the system, including the acquisition of all of the new technology, the construction of an automatic toll collection portal, the adjustment of existing trails and the removal of toll stations, will cost up to 570 million kuna in total.

The new system for Croatian motorways, without the need for major upgrades, should work effectively for at least fifteen years, and the return on this handsome investment is expected after a mere seven years of operation. As was explained during yesterday's presentation, a large surplus of workers isn't an expected result of the introduction of this new, more efficient system, as most cashiers will be transferred to other positions, such as to mobile teams which will control billing, control centres, and marketing and sales departments.

In order to introduce a new toll billing model, the Croatian legal regulation will of course need to be appropriately adjusted to allow for the change. First and foremost, this refers to the powers of the cashier who will be placed in the mobile units who will be responsible for discovering unpaid road tolls.

Therefore, in the aforementioned ministry, they are preparing a special Law on tolls by incorporating parts of the Misdemeanor Act and the Law on Roads.

The cachiers working in the mobile units would thus be given more powers which only inspectors currently have. The new law would also establish a shorter deadline for handling and charging for any violations.

The entire toll charge will be monitored at the control centres, and the mobile units will then catch those who have not paid their road tolls after having received an alert from the centre upon a vehicle's exit from the motorway.

In addition, amendments to the Misdemeanor Act will also be initiated.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle page for much more on Croatian roads, driving in Croatia and fees on Croatian motorways.

Ever wondered just where in the mountains of Croatia you need to travel to manage to catch a glimpse of the wildlife? If it's deer you want to see, the roads in the Kvarner area might just be your best bet.

Your thoughts probably take you to some God forsaken, dangerous place in the Velebit mountain range or far off the beaten path in the rolling, green hills of Lika, but the roads around Rijeka and in the wider Kvarner area might just be your best bet. In fact, it seems that the entire Gorski-Kotar County area is teeming with wildlife, with deer causing the most issues of all.

As Morski writes on the 28th of June, 2019, as of the beginning of this week on the roads in the wider area of Crikvenica, Jelenje, Bakar, Matulji and Brod Moravica, all of which are in the Kvarner area, there were five cases of deer having run out onto the road and into oncoming traffic.

In these events, there were no injured persons, but unfortunately the deer, likely having run into the road in panic, were hit by cars. The total damage created by the deer so far is estimated at about 34,000 kuna. In addition, on June the 26th, in the wider area of Mali Lošinj, domestic animals, more precisely livestock, were recorded causing issues with traffic. In this instance, sheep were seen wandering around on the road, endangering not only their lives but the lives of drivers.

Police from the Kvarner area have since stated that these deer-related events were recorded between 23:30 and 23:30, therefore due to these unexpected occurrences of animals on the roads, both wild and domestic, the police advocated for drivers to exercise increased vigilance, particularly in the morning and evening hours and on less busy roads in areas less settled by humans.

It's worth remembering in accordance with the road traffic safety act, a driver of a vehicle which hits an animal on the road, can be held responsible for misdemeanor if it is determined that the animal has been hit due to a breach of traffic regulations or because the driver was speeding.

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As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 26th of May, 2019, the intense fight against speeding in Croatia continues. At a few locations across Croatia, new ''super cameras'' that you simply can't manage to escape from or cheat have been set up.

The new cameras look completely different from those set up a few years ago and are much more powerful, according to a report from 24sata.

The Cordon-M4 camera is manufactured by the Russian company Simicon, which incorporates a number of technologies developed for the needs of the Russian Army and is currently one of the most advanced traffic surveillance cameras in the world. The camera can control all cars in all four lanes regardless of the direction in which they're moving.

It uses advanced radar technology and individually measures the speed of all of the vehicles passing. With the help of a high-resolution camera, it can automatically detect and read the plates from all European Union countries. When a car exceeds the permitted speed, the camera quickly recognises it and extracts its photograph.

The details and information about the individual driving the car and breaking the speed limit in Croatia can be stored in the camera's memory and transmitted over wireless connections. For example, it can be connected to a PC with police sitting nearby, or, the data can be sent to a central police server.

The camera software is able to automatically generate a police misdemeanor warrant and attach a photo to it, which could significantly reduce the scope of the work of Croatia's traffic police officers.

In addition, Croatia's new cameras will recognise and record any car that has an expired registration. Even complete and utter darkness is no problem because it is equipped with an advanced infrared system so no light whatsoever is needed during the night.

These new cameras are more compact than previous ones and don't need special pillars, they can be installed on any of the lighting posts or on the signalling and surveillance structures already placed along the highway.

They are currently being placed at numerous locations across the Republic  of Croatia. For now, nine cameras have been set up down in Dalmatia, more specifically in Split, Šibenik, Trogir, Imotski, Omiš and Makarska.

Make sure to follow our dedicated news page for much more.

After a decade of silence and complete inactivity, the Croatian Government is moving once again towards the temptation of a highway construction project towards Dubrovnik, a move initially started by former PM Ivo Sanader.

As Kresimir Zabec/Novac writes on the 2nd of February, 2019, after a rather unnecessarily lengthy and of course unclear title, the conclusion of the ''study documentation for the road connection of southern Dalmatia to the motorway network system of the Republic of Croatia from the Metković junction to the future Pelješac bridge and from the Doli junction to the City of Dubrovnik'' (yes you can take a breath now), which was adopted during Friday's Government session held in Dubrovnik, has actually led back to the beginning of re-activating the old plan to build a highway to Dubrovnik.

The last time constructing a highway to Dubrovnik was mentioned was way back in 2009, ten whole years ago, when a construction contract worth 3.675 billion kuna was signed in Osojnik in the presence of the controversial former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, an amount which didn't include the VAT for the planned Doli - Dubrovnik section. Although the contracts were indeed signed, the money for this project was never secured, therefore the works never started and all in all, time went by and people simply forgot about it for the most part.

Although there are permits, projects and designs from that time that still exist and could be acceptable today, Croatian roads (Hrvatske ceste) will spend 4.06 million kuna this year to take a better look at the southern Dalmatian transport system in the area of ​​Dubrovnik-Neretva County and its link with the existing highway network, and determine the feasibility of any highway construction from the existing Metković junction to the future Pelješac bridge, and then from Doli to the City of Dubrovnik. They'll also rule whether or not it is simply better to use the highway through neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina.

EU co-financing

Croatia's Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, has already jumped the gun when it comes to the talks held on Friday, stating that the Ploče - Dubrovnik motorway will be built, but the question is when. He is counting on the EU being prepared to co-finance the project in the next operational period. However, some insist that a study is needed because the road image itself has changed over the past ten years, not only in southern Croatia, but also in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The motorway was built behind Ploče and the where the future Pelješac bridge will be, in neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina, the construction of part of the Vc corridor from Počitelj to the border with Montenegro through Popovo polje has also begun.

Compared to ten years ago, the highway would now be changed somewhat. Back then, the route went from Ploče to the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina at Neum and then continued on the other side down south to Dubrovnik.

It was estimated that eighty kilometres of highway from Ploče to Dubrovnik could cost around 732 million euros.

Today, it is assumed that the direction would go from the current Karamatići junction to the Pelješac junction, from where traffic will go down to Pelješac bridge. That equals approximately twenty kilometres of brand new highway sections. The traffic would continue along the new Pelješac road to the Doli junction, and from there 29.6 kilometers of highway would be built leading down to Dubrovnik.

According to the old 2009 project, a total of thirty objects needed to be built, of which there were ten viaducts, nine tunnels, and eight underpasses. Back then, the price of one kilometre of construction was 16.5 million euros without VAT, equalling a total of almost half a billion euros without VAT. The price of the construction of the highway from Karamatići to Pelješac is as yet unknown, but this section is also a very demanding part of the project as the route passes through the Neretva valley, so a high level of environmental protection will be required. Owing to all of the above, estimates are that the entire highway from Ploče down to Dubrovnik could stand at a massive 800 million euros.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated lifestyle and politics pages. If it's just Dubrovnik and the extreme south of Dalmatia you're interest in, give Total Dubrovnik a follow.

Click here for the original article by Kresimir Zabec for Novac.jutarnji.hr

Driving in Croatia is by far the best way to see the beauty and the natural diversity of the interior of the country, as well as that of the coast, but many an accident occurs on some of Croatia's more dangerous roads, often resulting in serious injury and death. The Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure aims to evaluate the situation in order to properly inform drivers of known hazardous areas, as well as work to make them safer.

As Josip Bohutinski/VL/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 31st of January, 2019, the overall purpose of this project, as has since been explained by the competent ministry, is to improve Croatia's road infrastructure by repairing proven dangerous places on the country's public roads, ie, reducing the number of accidents which result in material damage and reducing the number of injured and fatally wounded on state roads.

The Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure provided a massive 55,433,982.80 kuna for the remediation of hazardous sites (black spot removal) on state roads project. Croatian roads (Hrvatske ceste), as a user of this project, will repair a total of 23 known hazardous sites throughout the Republic of Croatia. The aforementioned black road removal project on Croatian roads is being carried out as part of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure's investment in the development of transport infrastructure aimed at increasing road safety, Vecernji list writes.

The aforementioned ministry said that back in June of last year, they launched a call for the co-financing of the project which aims to bring further safety measures to driving in Croatia, for which Croatian roads was readily approved. The total value of the project stands at 68,596.132,80 kuna, with eligible financing costs amounting to 55,433,982.80 kuna, and 47,118,885.38 kuna will be financed from the European Regional Development Fund and 8,315,097.42 kuna from the state budget.

As previously mentioned, the competent ministry explained that the purpose of this project is to improve road infrastructure by repairing areas which are known to be dangerous on Croatia's public roads, with the aim of reducing the number of accidents, many of which are serious and even fatal. Croatian roads has therefore produced a document entitled ''a plan for the rehabilitation of dangerous areas on the state roads of the Republic of Croatia" based on the then valid methodology for the proper identification of such dangerous sites.

According to this methodology, on Croatia's state roads during the period up until the end of 2016, 32 hazardous sites were identified, nine of which have been remedied and the remaining 23 dangerous sites are the subject of this project. The 23 black spots were divided into 12 counties, in Zagreb (1), Karlovac (2), Varaždin (1), Bjelovar-Bilogora (1), Primorje-Gorski Kotar (7), Požega-Slavonia (2), Vukovar (1), Zadar (2), Lika-Senj (1), Šibenik-Knin (1) and Split-Dalmatia (2).

The ministry went on to explain that on the basis of the project documentation prepared in these hazardous places, the plan is to carry out works such as the modification of all types of traffic signaling and equipment, including better application and placement of traffic signalisation, the construction of sufficient widths for access roads and for pedestrian walkways, pedestrian crossings, the construction of roundabouts, pavement works, the installation of protective fences, the relocation and construction of bus stops, as well as the reconstruction of intersections.

Driving in Croatia should be a pleasure, and the correction of known dangerous sites, the ministry says, will improve traffic safety on the country's roads with an emphasis on safety placed on some of the most vulnerable traffic participants, including pedestrians and bikers. Croatia's roads should be built and corrected to ensure a better tolerance for potential driving mistakes, which will reduce the overall likelihood of an accident taking place.

Make sure to stay up to date with our dedicated lifestyle page for more information on driving in Croatia, and much more.

Click here for the original article by Josip Bohutinski/VL on Poslovni Dnevnik

Driving in Zagreb comes with both ease and difficulties, unlike the along the coast, the time of year rarely causes issues when it comes to traffic in Zagreb, but Mayor Milan Bandić's timing for major roadworks often does.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 14th of December, 2018, after having been delayed multiple times, the closing of the huge Zagreb roundabout has now been announced for this coming Sunday, December the 16th, 2018, as has another important event, a sporting one.

On Sunday, December the 16th, the Zagreb Advent Run will take place in the Croatian capital, and driving in Zagreb will become more problematic as the new traffic changes will come into force.

Isidor Kršnjavi street (Ulica Isidora Kršnjavog), where the start of the race will be, will be closed for all traffic from 08:00 to 12:30 on the aforementioned date.

The rest of the routes being used within the scope of the Zagreb Advent Run will begin being closed off by local police several minutes before the start of the race at 10:00 and will remain closed until 12:30.

Sunday will also bring problems owing to the Dinamo Zagreb - Hajduk Split match, which traditionally brings with it major traffic jams, at 15:00.

Make sure to follow our dedicated news page for more information on traffic and driving in Zagreb, as well as in the rest of the country. If it's just Zagreb you're interested in, stay up to date with everything you need to know about what's going on in the Croatian capital city by following Total Zagreb.

Driving in Croatia is always a pleasure. From the famously smooth roads, even in the most rugged and mountainous areas, to taking in the truly diverse scenery the country has to offer from coast to continent, a road trip through Croatia is undoubtedly a must do when spending any length of time here.

Despite the joy of driving on such perfect roads and enjoying the incredible bio-diversity of the land, winter is well and truly on its way and along with freezing temperatures and snow, it intends to bring some hefty fines and a stronger police presence across the country.

The police have already announced a few new sets of high fines and multiple actions in which the ''hunt'' will be on for those not wearing seat belts or using their phones while driving, and the Zagreb police are upping their game once again as the cold begins to bite in continental Croatia.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 6th of December, 2018, in the area governed by the Zagreb police administration, a preventative action is set to take place. The Zagreb police announced that the action will be implemented this weekend.

From the 7th to the 10th of December, Zagreb police officers will carry out a preventive action directed at enhanced vehicle and driver supervision, the general aim of which is to prevent and sanction the most serious violations, known commonly all over the world as the four major killers on the road.

These offenses are alcohol consumption while driving, speeding, not wearing a seat belt, and the improper use of mobile phones and similar devices, as well as an array of other offenses which frequently contribute to the occurrence and the often tragic consequences of most traffic accidents.

Make sure to stay up to date with our news page for more. If it's just Zagreb you're interested in, make sure to follow Total Zagreb for everything going on in the Croatian capital city.

The Croatian police have been upping their game recently when it comes to fining drivers, from offenses like using your phone while driving to not having your seatbelt buckled, we've now entered the colder months and drivers having left snow on their car roofs and car bonnets (hoods), are next in line for a hefty fine.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 28th of November, 2018, drivers who haven't cleaned bothered to clean the snow from their vehicle's roof or engine cover pose not only a major danger to themselves on the roads, as well as to others.

Avoiding the unwanted task of having to clean snow off your car in the morning can however be avoided entirely with the use of a simple piece of cardboard and two socks, according to 24sata.

If you put the piece of cardboard on the windshield in the morning, it won't freeze over, and a sock on each windscreen wiper blade will prevent them from freezing and sticking themselves to the glass. If you haven't or don't intend to do this, make sure to take other proper measures or be prepared to wake up that bit earlier as properly removing snow and ice is, as you'll likely be aware of, quite time consuming.

The Croatian police have warned that hefty fines will be given to those who drive their cars without having removed the snow and ice from the vehicle beforehand. Snow that flies off your car when in motion can cause a danger to other drivers, and you may be completely blinded when braking, which is one of many reasons why uncleaned snow and ice can easily cause an otherwise completely avoidable traffic accident.

If the Croatian police stop you on the road with snow and ice left on your car, you will receive a 1,000 kuna penalty.

Make sure to follow our news page for more info on the Croatian police and driving in Croatia.

German statisticians released data on their export of used diesel cars in recent days, and Croatia has taken second place, after the Ukrainians, according to a report from Jutarnji list's Autoklub. Despite warnings from environmentalists and eco-warriors, which many experts claim to be false, it appears that Croats love diesel engines regardless.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 16th of November, 2018, with the growth of diesel imports from Germany in 2018, from 89.6 percent in relation to the same period last year, Croatia continues to hold onto the second most respectable position on the entire chart, while first place continues to be reserved by the Ukrainians, a country for which an incredible increase of 136.8 has been recorded.

The fact that these aren't just some fantasy figures is supported by the data of the Promocija plus agency, and according to them, in the first nine months of this year, a never before seen number of used cars entered Croatia, a massive 57,067 of them, which is equal to 16,732, or 41.5 percent more than were recorded during the same period last year. A large contribution to such a jump, which can be read clearly from the provided figures, was given mainly by diesel engine vehicles.

These are mostly, of course, imported from Germany, and there are as many as 15,434 more diesel engine cars on Croatia's roads than were recorded last year. Their share in the total number of imported used cars this year has jumped from 88.2 percent to 88.7 percent, a clear indicator that Croats love diesel engines.

This is likely to unnerve eco-warriors and those who make conscious steps to put the environment first, generally by aiming to reduce their carbon footprint. Is the propagated idea that Croatia is becoming a "dumping ground for old diesel engines from Europe" a remotely truthful one? According to some experts, no, it isn't, and believe it or not, there are some rather strong arguments to support that fact.

For starters, we need to look at good old excise duty. As is already very well known, in recent years, exise duty is ''counted'' against a vehicle's CO2 emissions and value, and excise tax tables are arranged as such so that they do not fall ''into the hands'' of favour of older cars which typically produce higher and unwanted emissions of harmful gases.

According to the obtained information, these imported diesel engine cars don't pose a negative effect on the average age of the domestic Croatian car fleet as would be the case with the import of a large number of brand new cars, and the same applies to the emission of harmful gases. These imports are still newer and cause considerably less pollution than the existing ones do, and therefore ecologists and environmentalists need not be afraid. The increase in diesel car imports is not a problem because Croatia has no particular air quality problems, whereas Germany, for example, definitely does.

Make sure to stay up to date with our lifestyle page for more. If you're into all things eco, follow Total Eco Croatia for info on just how the environment is put first by various organisations across the country.