First Deputy Minister for Restoration, Infrastructure and Transport Serhii Derkach said that Ukraine must adopt a bill by the end of 2027 that will create the legal conditions for introducing toll roads. “We are working on the bill today; according to the agreement with the European Commission, to which we have committed, it must be adopted in parliament by the end of next year. So by the end of next year we must definitely have a law that says toll roads can be created in Ukraine,” Derkach said.
Timeline for adoption and scope of commitments
The bill must be adopted in parliament by the end of next year in line with the agreements with the European Commission. The law is to provide the legal framework for creating toll roads in Ukraine.
According to Derkach, the adoption of the law is expected only to create the legal possibility for introducing toll roads; the actual launch of specific tolled routes next year is not obligatory.
Who may be affected by tolls
The EU requirements being taken into account during the preparation of the bill foresee mandatory introduction of road charges for commercial vehicles, in particular trucks and buses. This does not mean mandatory application of charges to all vehicle categories.
The country will be able to set the rules and decide whether to apply charges to all vehicles or only to certain categories, within the established legal framework.
Possible mechanism via public-private partnership (PPP)
One of the mechanisms under consideration for toll roads is a public-private partnership (PPP): a private company builds a road and then, for a defined period, collects payments for road use to recoup its investment. The source gives an example of a 15-year project: the company builds the road for 2 years and then maintains it for 13 years.
However, according to Derkach, at present this mechanism looks unrealistic because a large number of roads require reconstruction rather than being built from scratch.
Initial road projects and local authority involvement
Several initial PPP projects in the road sector are currently being prepared, which will envisage construction or widening of roads by a private partner. Some projects provide for periods of construction and then long-term maintenance of the roads by private partners with subsequent payments from the state.
Derkach also noted that local self-government bodies can use this instrument, and the state budget is expected to be short of funds for large-scale road works for several more years.
