The metropolitan metro is constantly undergoing changes. New stations and lines are being built. This allows you to combine different areas of the city and the suburbs into a single transport network. The metro allows you to quickly get from one area to another, without standing idle for several hours in traffic jams, which are not uncommon in Moscow. One of the main lines is the circle, which until 2016 was the only metro line that intersected with all other lines. This year the MKZHD (Moscow Ring Railway) was opened. It partially duplicates the second ring of the motorway, and in the north of Moscow it passes above it. In the article we will tell you what are the features of the Moscow Ring Road, what the new metro scheme "Moscow with the Moscow Ring Road" looks like, and consider other important points.
Moscow Metro
The Moscow Metro has one of the most complex schemes in the world. It consists of 14 lines and 203 stations, among which there are both underground and surface ones. Most of the subway lines pass through the entire city. There isalso short lines, having only 2-3 stations in their composition and connecting non-intersecting branches. There are also 2 roundabouts, one of which is not quite a traditional subway. It will be discussed further.
New circle line: what it looks like
The Moscow Ring Railway is a mostly open land type railway. It passes on a flat territory, over roads and difficult sections passes over a bridge. The new circle line has 31 stations, including both separate and intersecting metro lines.
To the Moscow Ring Railway, not ordinary metro trains go, but trains that look more like electric trains. These trains are called "swallows". They are much better equipped than simple subway trains. They are larger in size, more spacious, they provide more seating. They also have toilets, screens, space for transporting strollers and bicycles. They even promise to equip the cars with sockets for recharging gadgets, but the Wi-Fi network is still in doubt. They want to make it, but when and how well it is still unknown.
New circle line: how it works
The map of the Moscow Metro with Moscow Ring Railway shows that many stations of the Circle Line will have transitions to metro stations. There will be 17 such stations. When transferring from 11 stations, the transition to the metro will be through closed galleries: metro engineers call this the “dry feet” principle. From 10 Moscow Ring Railway stations it will be possible totransfer to commuter trains. And it is planned to connect each stop with ground transport stops. This has already been done, but not yet in full. It takes 2 to 5 minutes to get from one station to another.
Trains run at intervals of 5-6 minutes during peak hours (morning and evening), 10-15 minutes at other times. Opening hours are the same as the rest of the metro - from 6 am to 1 am.
The fare on the Moscow Ring Road is the same as in the subway - 50 rubles. The same travel cards are also valid ("Troika", "90 minutes", preferential, etc.). Unless when moving from the metro station to the MKZD station, you will have to use the card again or pay for the fare using a single ticket.
What the metro map looks like now
The updated scheme of the Moscow metro with the Moscow Ring Railway began to look more ambitious and complete. The subway began to cover a much larger area, and getting from one station to another (which used to require, for example, 3 transfers) is now possible with 1 transfer or without them at all.
Advantages and disadvantages of MKZD
MKZD, like any innovation in a big city, has its advantages and disadvantages. Consider the benefits first:
- Reducing the time spent to travel from point A to point B on the Moscow metro. The scheme with new stations presented above allows you to navigate it, maybe not faster, but now it has become more real to make a trip without unnecessary transfers.
- Decrease in passenger flow on the first circle line and, as a result, its unloading.
- The new transport scheme of the Moscow metro with the Moscow Ring Railway covers remote areas of Moscow and the Moscow region.
- Development of infrastructure and development of empty areas near the new stations of the Moscow Ring Road.
Flaws:
- Many did not like the updated Moscow metro. The scheme with new stations baffles both tourists and locals. But we think you can get used to it.
- Travel on the Moscow Ring Road is paid separately from the standard metro. That is, it turns out that it is profitable to travel along the new road only for those who have preferential travel cards or who travel without transfers.
- A temporary disadvantage is that the new Moscow metro scheme with the Moscow Ring Railway has not yet appeared everywhere, so you have to rely either on old schemes or on mobile applications and printed cards. But that will change within a couple of months.
Further prospects
In the future, it is planned to complete all transitions to adjacent underground metro stations, to bring exits from the Moscow Ring Road to public transport stops. So far, the Moscow metro scheme with the Moscow Ring Railway is not very well known not only for Russians, but even for Muscovites. Therefore, already there is a replacement of signboards with the scheme in the subway and on the streets. The flow of people on the Moscow Ring Railway is not yet so large, but the number of passengers is expected to gradually increase and, accordingly, an increase in profits.
It is also planned to build new residential complexes near the Moscow Ring Railway stations, because earlierhard-to-reach territories ceased to be such. For example, a development plan for the former territory of the ZIL plant has already been proposed. In general, it is expected that the Moscow Ring Road will breathe new life into remote areas and into the transport infrastructure of the capital.
