Only “made in Russia” taxis will soon be allowed to circulate in the country

In the image, a yellow Volga with black checkers, a symbol of Soviet taxis, rolls down a light-filled avenue. Without a driver at the wheel, it resembles a frozen postcard. This is how the Russian business weekly Monocle chose to depict the new law that is shaking up the Russian taxi industry. “It has entered a new zone of turbulence,” it writes .

In fact, after a series of obstacles, including soaring gasoline prices, rising spare parts costs and labor shortages, the Russian government is imposing a new course of action.

From March 2026, to be included in the official taxi register – created in 2023 as part of a broad regulatory framework for the profession – Russian vehicles will have to be produced locally or meet a high threshold of “location points” defined by the Ministry of Industry.

Officially, the announced measure aims to boost the sluggish domestic auto industry, which has been strained by sanctions and the flight of foreign manufacturers. But this decision is likely to stall the sector, Monocle claims.

Because in a country where the taxi fleet has reached 700,000 vehicles, the "localization" requirement could threaten half of the current drivers, or 507,000 people. The government's Analysis Council also predicts a drop in revenue of nearly 290 billion rubles (approximately 3.2 billion euros).

The initiative was initiated by Avtovaz, the manufacturer of Lada and the main lobbyist for the reform, which is determined to regain control of a market dominated by foreign brands.

Today, "out of four cars in service, two are Chinese, one is Russian, and the other comes from Europe or Korea," summarizes Natalia Lozinskaya of the National Taxi Council association. And this is because they are considered as better suited to intensive professional use, observes Monocle.

Conversely, Lada's approved models, such as the Granta and Vesta, are struggling to convince professional drivers. Breakdowns frequently occur within the first 50,000 kilometers, parts supplies are slow, and the overall quality of the vehicles is deteriorating, the article states.

The same goes for the operators. “Ladas have become too expensive for their quality,” laments Pavel Stennikov, a spokesman for the Maxim taxi service. “In five years, their prices have tripled.” Buying a new Lada in central Russia, including transport and maintenance costs, costs twice as much as a used vehicle imported from Japan.

As a knock-on effect, the average price of a ride rose by 7% at the beginning of the year, reaching 616 rubles (around 7 euros), while the number of trips fell by 35% year-on-year.

Despite Avtovaz's promises, including increased subsidies and technical adjustments, few industry professionals have faith in the measure's effectiveness.