The opening ceremony for the launch of passenger traffic on the Moscow Ring Railway was held at Luzhniki Station with the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin, President of JSC Russian Railways Oleg Belozerov, and Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov. Participants of the ceremony visited the Luzhniki station and made a trip to Ploshchad Gagarin station.
After the ceremony, the Moscow Ring Railway opened for passengers: 28 Lastochka trains took off from 14 stops at the same time.
The length of the Moscow Ring Railway is 54 km; there are 31 stops on the ring. Transport interchange hubs were designed at stops, making it possible to transfer to stations of the Moscow metro, aboveground public transport, and the radial line of the railroad. The new interchange circuit will free up the subway, aboveground transport, and radial-line and city train stations and improve the accessibility of many areas of Moscow. According to forecasts, by 2020 passenger traffic on the Moscow Ring Railway will reach 250 million people per year and 430 000 passengers per day. For the last four months of 2016, about 25 million passengers are expected.
The project was launched in 2011. Over the years the complete reconstruction of railway infrastructure and electrification Moscow Ring Railway was carried out. During the reconstruction about 190 km of track was laid and 29 structures were reconstructed and built, each of which is a complex engineering structure. In addition, nearly 5000 supports were installed, 419 km of contact network was assembled, and the reconstruction of more than 35 km of utilities was carried out.
The III main road, which will carry cargo and technological movement to preserve the technologies of the Moscow Railway Junction and serve the needs of businesses in the city, was built on the Moscow Ring Railway. The ring was laid with a jointless road, thereby increasing the level of comfort and noise reduction.
In the first stage of the Moscow Ring Railway, 26 stops were opened for passengers: Vladykino, Botanichesky Sad, Rostokino, Belokamennaya, Bulvar Rokossovskogo, Lokomotiv, Izmailovo, Shosse Entuziastov, Andronovka, Nizhegorodskaya, Novokhokhlovskaya, Ugreshskaya, Avtozavodskaya, ZIL, Verkhnie Kotly, Krymskaya, Ploshchad Gagarina, Luzhniki, Kutuzovskaya, Delovoy Tsentr, Shelepikha, Khoroshyovo, Streshnevo, Baltiyskaya, Likhobory, and Okruzhnaya.
Another five stops will be opened by the end of 2016. In total, at the end of 2016 the passengers of the Moscow Ring Railway will be able to transfer to 14 stations of the Moscow Metro and 5 stops of the radial line of the railways.
Completing a full circle around the ring takes 84 minutes, and movement is carried out daily from 5:50 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. On weekdays trains will run at intervals of 6 minutes during peak hours (7:30–11:30 a.m. and 5:00–8:30 p.m.) and 12 minutes off-peak. On weekends and public holidays, from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m., trains will also run at intervals of 6 minutes.
Passenger service on the Moscow Ring Railway is carried out by JSC Russian Railways on Lastochka electric trains (ES2G) based at the Podmoskovnaya depot. A total of 33 electric trains produced domestically will be used for transportation.
The trains are equipped with convenient signs indicating their routes on the front of the head carriages and side cars. Electrical outlets (220V AC) are provided, making it possible to charge your mobile device while traveling. At the head of each car there are toilets (one per car) equipped with special equipment for physically challenged passengers. The cars are also equipped with a climate control system and Internet access (Wi-Fi).
Maintenance of the electric trains is carried out at the modern Podmoskovnaya depot near the Krasniye Baltiets stop of the Riga Line of Moscow Railway. The depot uses the latest technical solutions, reducing the time and cost of maintenance and having practically no effect on the environment.
(Source: RZD)
