Rush hours in big cities are always associated with gigantic traffic jams. Every year there are more and more cars, which means that the problem only progresses all the time. Even broadband highways do not always cope with heavy traffic. Traffic congestion occurs for a variety of reasons. One of the reasons is the repair work of the heating main or the asphalt pavement itself. Often, traffic accidents are the culprits of traffic jams. However, even more often, a huge number of cars that a road designed for a flow of half or even three times less than in fact is simply not able to handle is a real disaster.
Building a new road - the right solution to the problem of traffic jams
No matter how faithfully the situation in our country reflects the words of N.V. Gogol, who clearly formulated the causes of Russia's ills in the 19th century, lately enough attention has been paid to roads. Especially often, new roads are built in our two capitals, where the bulk of budget money settles. Perhaps that is how it should be? After all, capitals, both main and northern, are, as it were, the face of the whole state. But let's get down to business. Not so long ago, a decision was approved on the construction of a toll high-speed line in St. Petersburg, called the Eastern High-Speed Diameter.
Several investors will take part in this project at once. It should be noted that Smolny has already signed agreements with some of them. VTB and EDB banks are designated as official participants in the construction. Agreements with other companies are still under negotiation. This is because the city wants to minimize budget costs and cover the financial part of the project through investment.
East high-speed diameter of St. Petersburg
So what is the new toll road in St. Petersburg? Presumably it will be a six-lane highway with a total length of 22.6 kilometers. It is planned that it will start from Blagodatnaya Street and stretch through the Krasnogvardeisky, Nevsky, Frunzensky, Moscow and Kirov districts of the city. Then the road will join that part of the Ring Road that is located north of the village of Kudrovo. Further, the Eastern High-Speed Diameter will pass to the Murmansk Highway and will touch the intersection with it. In addition, it is known that Smolny concluded an additional agreement with the construction project management on the construction of new interchanges.
Controversial Design Issues
Most of the disputes and hype that barely subsided in St. Petersburg in connection with the recent construction of the Western High-Speed Diameter were related to the city’s financial claims to the project investors. But despite this, a new project is already on the nose - the construction of the Eastern High-Speed Diameter. It was first announced back in 2016. At that time, the route trace was not clearly defined.
Although at present the draft of the new highway is considered approved, however, to this day there are many unresolved issues related to the laying of a new highway. It is enough to say that some Petersburgers wrote letters to the president, where they stated their feelings that the highway would stretch directly above their heads. Residents of Krasnogvardeisky and Nevsky regions expressed particular indignation. Among them were owners of garages built on the territory of the proposed highway and in the immediate vicinity of it.
When considering all the controversial issues, it was decided to change the trace of the Eastern High-Speed Diameter in favor of the interests of citizens. Also, some identified design errors were corrected.
Investor financial liabilities
The previously mentioned main investors voiced specific figures of the funds that they intend to invest in this project. So, VTB Bank announced an investment amount of 110 billion rubles. Following his example, the Eurasian Bank EDB expressed its readiness to support the East Speed Diameter project in the amount of 150 billion rubles. But since both banks are far from the only planned investors, it is still difficult to see the full picture of investments at this stage of financing. The head of the Investment Committee, Irina Babiuk, said that they prefer to recoup all the costs of the highway only with the help of serious investors. And the more of those connected to participate in the project, the better it will be for St. Petersburg and the region.
Is there a bridge across the Neva
Returning to unresolved issues, it should be noted that the main point in the discussion of the project of the Eastern High-Speed Diameter was not only errors in the design of the highway, but also the dilemma of crossing the Neva between Fayansova and Zolnaya streets. Two options for resolving the difficulty were proposed here. The first option is to build a bridge. But this violates the protected view of the city. The second option is tunneling. However, in this case, the construction price rises sharply. It is not yet clear which option the officials will stop at. In addition to the fact that the implementation of the project will continue for five years, the most reliable official information is not available. Most likely, the megaproject will gain real shape no earlier than 2018.
What is clear for sure
Answering this question, we can confidently state that there should be an Eastern high-speed diameter in St. Petersburg. And this decision is indicated quite clearly. Of course, much remains to be decided in the last months of the outgoing year. For example, determine the financial model of the project. If we recall the planning of the Western Highway, then most of the funds for its construction were allocated from the federal and city budgets. Nevertheless, the authorities of St. Petersburg are firmly in the position of financing a new project at the expense of investors.
And probably this will be a better model compared to the previous project. After all, it is no secret that wherever much money is invested, officials appear who want to profit and appropriate some of them in their favor. Perhaps investor banks will become better able to control the costs of their investments than representatives of city authorities do. After all, who else but investors is more interested than others in the targeted use of their money. But so far all these are only dreams and assumptions. And how it all happens in reality - time will tell.