MOSCOW, August 27 (RIA Novosti) - Construction has begun on Moscow’s longest ring road yet, Kommersant newspaper reported Wednesday.
“The Central Automobile Ring Road will affect the development of the whole capital region, home to tens of millions of people. This megaproject is one of the top priorities in the country’s development,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said at the ground-breaking ceremony, which was also attended by Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov and Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov.
The 525-kilometer-long (326 mile) Central Automobile Ring Road will be located 20 to 86 kilometers away from the Moscow Automobile Ring Road (MKAD), a ten-lane road that has encircled Moscow (with the exception of New Moscow and several newer districts) since 1961. The toll for using the Central Ring Road is expected to be set at 2.3 rubles per kilometer ($0.06) and the average driving speed is expected to be up to 150 kilometers per hour.
The ambitious project to help relieve the heavy traffic on city’s roads before the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in Russia, will cost 300 billion rubles ($8.3 billion) and is due to be complete in just four years.
