Rostov Invests 40 Billion Rubles in Traffic Cameras

The government of Rostov Region has concluded a concession agreement with the company Urbantech-SZ from St. Petersburg for over 40 billion rubles (approximately $444 million at current rates). As part of the project, by 2038, one thousand new photo and video recording complexes for traffic violations will be installed in the region, more than tripling their number — currently, fewer than 300 cameras are in operation here.

Governor Yury Slyusar signed a decree approving expenses of 40.025 billion rubles (about $445 million). These funds will be paid from the region«s road fund annually from 2026 to 2039.

According to the agreement«s terms, each new camera should record an average of 28 violations per day. With an average fine of 957 rubles (about $11), over 13 years the total volume of penalties will exceed 127 billion rubles (approximately $1.41 billion). This money will be used to pay for the investor»s services.

Project financing includes:

• 562.7 million rubles (about $6.3 million) of Urbantech-SZ«s own funds;
• 7.26 billion rubles (about $81 million) in borrowed funds;
• 32.193 billion rubles (approximately $358 million), which will come from the operation of the photo-video recording system.

The new complexes will be able to detect a wide range of violations, including:

• speeding;
• failure to observe lane markings;
• driving without seatbelts fastened;
• using a phone while driving without a hands-free device.

Urbantech-SZ is part of the Moscow-based group of companies Urbantech-M. The firm was established in 2018, and its owners are not disclosed, although documents mention both Russian and Israeli citizens. In 2024, the company«s revenue was 1.2 billion rubles (about $13.3 million), and net profit was 2.07 billion rubles (approximately $23 million).

According to the company, it manages the road traffic safety system in Moscow Region and implements similar projects in St. Petersburg, Dagestan, and Nizhny Novgorod Region. The group also includes the equipment manufacturer Azimut. Urbantech claims that every fifth photo-video recording complex in Russia is installed or maintained by their specialists.