The lack of a crossing over the Don River has worried residents of a village in the Volgograd region.

The ferry crossing across the Don River near the village of Novogrigoryevskaya has been out of service for four days. The "state" ferry is undergoing repairs, while the "private" ferry has been closed by regulatory authorities. A district council member reassured local residents that the private ferry will resume service on April 16, and the "state" ferry on June 1.

As reported by "Kavkazsky Uzel" in January 2024, several villages in the Ilovlinsky District lost their short transport links to the district center and Volgograd during ice drift. Local residents complained in a video message to Putin, asking for help in resolving the problem. In early April 2026, residents of the villages of Trehostrovskaya and Novogrigoryevskaya in the Ilovlinsky District expressed their concern about the doubling of the cost of crossing the Don. They believe that such a "shocking" increase in prices for Volgogradavtodor's services will worsen their quality of life and significantly reduce the tourist appeal of the Donskoy Nature Park.

Residents of the village complained about the impossibility of reaching the district center.

Yevgeny Frolov, a resident of the Ilovlinsky District, told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on April 15 that his retired aunt and son-in-law live near Novogrigoryevskaya. There are two ferry crossings across the Don River in this area, connecting the residents of the village and nearby farmsteads with the "mainland" (the district center of Ilovlya and Volgograd). According to Frolov, the ferry belonging to Volgogradavtodor, which locals call "the state ferry," ceased operating on April 1. According to Frolov, fares on the second "cargo" ferry, owned by a private individual, doubled overnight. For example, the cost of transporting a passenger car rose from 80 to 150 rubles. But this ferry, too, was "stopped."

"Since April 13th, some regulatory agency has banned its operation. So, the villagers have been cut off from the mainland. In both cases, it's unclear when the ferries will resume operation. No one is explaining anything to the people," Evgeny complained.

Frolov told the journalist that his son-in-law works as a truck driver in Ilovlya. When the ferry stopped operating, he temporarily moved in with friends in a dormitory in Ilovlya; he is not yet returning home to his family. And the aunt can't visit her grandchildren or go to the clinic.

"My son-in-law is hoping the ferry will open soon so he can go home after work—to his family, to his children. But the aunt has a second-degree disability—she needs to be monitored by the district doctors. It's a matter of life and death," said Evgeny.

"Everyone says it's the people (the villagers) who are to blame—they complained about the ferrymen. And so they were shut down. But the complaints were justified: the ferries were old, they broke down frequently, and the embankment and approaches to the ferries needed to be updated. They should have been repaired on an ongoing basis, not shut down both ferries at once. And the ferry prices should have remained the same. For many, those prices are unaffordable. This isn't a city. This is a rural area. "People here are barely making ends meet," said local historian Andrei Kudinov, whose relatives also live on the right bank of the Don.

A woman who introduced herself as Elena lives in Novogrigoryevskaya. She confirmed that the ferry crossing has become more expensive.

"They say a private ferry will soon start operating again. But it will be a monopoly. I can only imagine what the prices will be. Last year, we collected signatures for a petition to the regional administration asking for a bridge to be built across the Don. But then we got the answer: there is no money and there won't be any for a long time. "Be patient," Elena lamented. Svetlana Surkova, the former head of the Trehostrovskoye rural settlement neighboring Novogrigoryevskaya and now an employee of one of the Ilovlino enterprises, explained to a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that Novogrigoryevskaya does indeed have two ferries: one belongs to the Volgogradavtodor State Budgetary Institution, and the other to a private entrepreneur (IP Temergeriyev). So, the private operator was shut down. The private operator was fined, and the state-owned ferry was closed for repairs. And yes, the residents of Novogrigoryevskaya and nearby villages, about 1,500 people, - "Caucasian Knot" note, are left without a ferry. Now the main detour must go through the Kletsky District. "A detour of 300-400 kilometers, or via the Trehostrovskaya ferry and the steppe, if the weather is dry," Svetlana said. Surkova also suggested that the private entrepreneur could significantly raise the prices for the reopened ferry, "since he'll be the only one operating." The fact that the prosecutor's office fined the entrepreneur 500,000 rubles could also influence the price hike, she suggested. Surkova also stated that the Trehostrovskaya ferry, which duplicates the Novogrigoryevskaya ferry, will likely remain open. They physically can't close it here. There's no other way to get to or from the village (Novogrigoryevskaya). The only way is across the steppe, a detour, and only for those who know the way. There's no internet. GPS doesn't show anything, and there are "hundreds of roads and hundreds of ways" across the steppe. "I've had to make round trips during floods, and even then, in a convoy, with an escort," Surkova said.

Deputy names ferry service resumption dates

A "Caucasian Knot" correspondent contacted Nadezhda Voronkova, chair of the Ilovlinsky District Duma (who is also the head of the Sirotinsky settlement). The deputy reported that the "private" freight ferry near the village of Novogrigoryevskaya will resume operations on April 16. She also reported that businessman Temergeriyev was not fined - "for nothing." Nadezhda reported the rates for this ferry service. They remained the same as during the last price increase: passenger car - 150 rubles (up to 1.5 tons), 250 rubles (over 1.5 tons), trailer - 150 rubles, Gazelle (minibus) - 250 rubles, tractor - 400 rubles, truck with trailer - 1,000 rubles.

"The prices have only increased by 50 rubles. By the way, ambulances, school buses, and fire trucks all ride free on the private ferry," the deputy explained.

Voronkova also said that the "state" Avtodor ferry is undergoing a technical inspection and (major) repairs.

"That's how it's supposed to be. The time has come. They plan to return the ferry on June 1st. "I don't know," explained Nadezhda Voronkova.

We were unable to obtain comment from the Volgograd Road Administration or businessman Temergeriyev. Earlier, the "Caucasian Knot" editorial team sent a request to the press service of the Volgograd Region Governor's Office for information regarding the reasons for the sharp increase in Don River ferry fares. However, there has been no response so far.

Lawyer names those responsible for ferry operations

Lawyer Sergey Ivaschenko, having familiarized himself with the situation in the village of Novogrigoryevskaya, listed the main issues directly related to the population's livelihoods that should be addressed by district and local authorities. In doing so, the lawyer cited Article 32 of Federal Law No. 33-FZ "On the General Principles of Local Self-Government in a Unified System of Public Authority." Ivaschenko acknowledged that Don River crossings are "the responsibility of the regional government and Avtodor."

"But local authorities must also monitor the problems with Don River crossings and keep abreast of them. Crossings involve issues such as ensuring safety on waterways, ensuring accessibility for people with disabilities and schoolchildren to social and transport infrastructure, and ensuring accessibility for fire brigades from the mainland—and we remember the wildfires in the Donskoy Nature Park. The village firefighters certainly won't be able to cope without the help of their colleagues in Ilovlino. And then there's the supply of fuel, medicine, and food to villages cut off from the mainland." "This is all the responsibility of the district authorities," Sergei Ivaschenko explained the importance of ensuring the uninterrupted operation of the ferry crossings on the Don.

According to him, if the crossing doesn't resume operations on April 16 or is closed again, the lawyer suggested that local residents first file complaints with the Volgogradavtodor State Budgetary Institution and the district administration.

"If the initial complaints are ineffective, they should be sent to the prosecutor's office and Rospotrebnadzor, as the only crossing over the Don is extremely important in terms of ensuring the safety of local residents and their quality of life," Sergei Ivaschenko advised.