Vehicles designed specifically for use in the Arctic and the North were presented at the second international conference, The Arctic: Shelf Projects and Sustainable Development of the Regions. Alla Koshurina, director of the Transport research and education center of the Alexeyev Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University, presented a 8x8 wheeled all-terrain vehicle and a rescue vehicle for use on the Arctic shelf, which can be used on drilling platforms, including in emergency situations.

"This is a new type of transport vehicle, designed not as a remake of mass-produced vehicles. There are very few manufacturers making vehicles for northern areas," she said. The existing rescue equipment (helicopters, boats, hovercraft, WIG vehicles, icebreakers and others), according to her, are not sufficiently reliable and fast in the Arctic and their maintenance is quite expensive.

The 8x8 wheeled all-terrain vehicle (two pairs of four wheels) can also move on four and six wheels.

"It can be equipped with all types of technology. This amphibious vehicle can be used by the Emergencies Ministry," Koshurina said. Scientists tested the vehicle in the midland; it moved through snow half a meter deep. Accommodating up to seven people, the vehicle weighs 7.2 tons. Its maximum speed is 70 km per hour on snow and 6 km per hour on water.

Also on display was a universal rescue vehicle (only an experimental model has been created so far) that can be built in several modifications and will be able to accommodate 20 to 50 people. Life support features include a hermetically sealed exterior, independent air and power supply and an automatic firefighting system. The vehicle may also be equipped with a self-driving system in difficult climate conditions, for example, to maneuver among icebergs. According to the project, the vehicle's maximum speed will be 25 km per hour on ice and snow surface and 13 km per hour on water. The vehicle uses a rotary screw propulsion unit.