It is difficult to find the second such country all over the world, besides the Russian Federation, whose existence would equally depend on the successful functioning of communication lines between its regions. This is due to both vast geographical spaces and the features of the historical development of the economy.
Russian roads
As a rule, the larger the country’s territory, the more internal roads in it are ranked by their status. Out of the whole variety of Russian roads, a certain part of them is singled out in a special category. They are usually denoted by the phrase "Federal Highway of Russia." It is easy to guess that such a status is assigned only to the most significant highways through which communication is made between regions of the country.
Any federal highway is integrated into the general transport infrastructure, which ensures the exchange of goods and the successful functioning of the national economy. The well-being and prosperity of all of Russia depends to a large extent on the consistent and well-thought-out development of the road network.
Classification
The entire road network existing in the Russian Federation is unified in accordance with applicable state standards. Each federal highway has its own individual designation on maps and directories. It consists of a lettering index and a track number. The letter M denotes the highway connecting the capital of the country with regional centers. For example, the M5 federal highway connects Moscow and Chelyabinsk. And of course - all the big and small cities on the segment of the path between them. In addition, the letter M denotes the federal highway through the entire territory of the country to the border with a foreign state. Index P denotes the highway connecting regional centers.
The prefixes E and AN mean that the federal highway is part of the international route passing through the European or Asian parts of the Russian Federation. The designations for the accession of roads to international highways are used in parallel with the national designation. In addition, access roads from the main highway to regional centers also have federal status. They are indicated on the maps by the letter A. It should be noted that another classification of highways is currently being developed. Its adoption is expected no earlier than 2018.
Financing and Development
The most important feature of the Federal Highway status is the fact that this object of the country's transport infrastructure is funded from the federal budget. This applies equally to operating costs and construction costs. Most regions of the country simply cannot afford to independently build and develop a modern road network. Therefore, plans for the development of road infrastructure are adopted at the highest level. Planning is usually done for a five year period.
Road standards
In its status, any federal highway must comply with a whole set of technical standards. It is not only about the condition of the roadway and the provision of the possibility of movement in several rows in each direction. No less important are bridge and tunnel crossings over natural obstacles and the whole complex of roadside infrastructure.
Of particular importance are road junctions. Ideally, all intersections with other highways should be made at different levels. Of course, by far not every federal highway fully meets all the necessary technical requirements. First of all, this concerns transport routes located behind the Ural ridge. Highways that meet European quality standards are not easy to build in Russia for a number of reasons. First of all, climatic factors matter. They strongly affect the cost of construction.
Roads and Economics
It is well known that the distance from the federal highway to the settlement directly affects the prospects for its further development. The well-being of the economy of any region begins with the planning and construction of transport infrastructure. In the Russian Federation, highways of a modern level are mainly equipped with its European part. And beyond the Urals, things are not so safe. Photo of the federal highway P297, connecting the Amur region with Yakutsk, gives reason to doubt its status.
For a considerable part of the journey, this federal highway is deprived of even elementary asphalt pavement, which makes it difficult to pass in the period of prolonged precipitation. And this cannot but affect the development of the economy of the Far East.
Cargo and passengers
A characteristic feature of federal highways is the predominance of freight traffic. Passengers to other regions usually prefer to travel by train or plane. It is faster and more convenient. This situation is due to the size of the geographical spaces of the country. Of course, any federal highway in Russia also provides passenger transportation - intercity buses run in accordance with the schedule.
But freight transportation on long-haul routes is predominant over passenger. On any photo of the federal highway, there are always more cargo vans and tractors than passenger buses.
In the regions
The current network of federal highways is distributed unevenly across the Russian Federation. And, no less essential, the technical condition of roads often leaves much to be desired. Moreover, their quality deteriorates with distance from the capital of the country and from large regional centers. This is evidenced by almost any photo of the federal highway in Siberia and the Far East. The situation in the regions is further complicated by the fact that roads need not only to be built on a very large stretch, but also maintained in a technically acceptable condition.
Given the simple fact that a significant part of the calendar year they are influenced by both low temperatures and other adverse factors, it is not so easy to implement. Among other things, a large annual temperature difference greatly destroys the road surface.
Speed mode
The most important element ensuring the smooth functioning of the federal transport system is the mode of movement of vehicles outside populated areas. According to the current rules of the road, the permitted speed on the federal highway is 90 kilometers per hour. And on specially allocated sections of motorways, it can reach 110 kilometers. Many people consider these numbers to be unreasonably underestimated. But such a restriction is one of the most important parameters of traffic safety. Nevertheless, the problem of increasing the speed limit is actively discussed both at the expert and at the legislative level.
And there is every reason to believe that in the very near future the maximum speed on the federal highway will be 120 and even 130 kilometers per hour. Of course, we are talking only about those areas where the technical conditions make it possible to ensure traffic safety. The main limiting factor for raising the speed limit is the quality of the road surface.
Will there be toll roads in Russia ?
This difficult issue is currently under active discussion. Most road users perceive the idea of tolls clearly negatively. People in Russia are used to traveling on the road for free, limiting themselves to paying the state an annual transport tax. However, world experience indicates that this is almost the only way to accumulate the necessary financial resources for the construction of new modern highways. Currently, toll sections have the federal highway M4 "Don" and some other highways in the European part of the country. And there is every reason to believe that such a practice will expand. There will be significantly more toll roads in the Russian Federation. Given the size of its territory, this is entirely justified.