Modern interchange nodes have been built in the city where the routes of several modes of transport cross. But for personal cars there are still no places. Modern interchange nodes have been built in the city where the routes of several modes of transport cross. But for personal cars there are still no places. Modern interchange nodes have been built in the city where the routes of several modes of transport cross. But for personal cars there are still no places.
I asked myself the same question six and a half years ago, when Sochi was chosen as the capital of the Olympics. Then, in the summer of 2007, the photographer and I went to the main Russian resort (ЗР, 2007, No. 8). We drove more than 1, 600 km only one way and came to the disappointing conclusion: the city is not ready to meet travelers. The condition of the route all the way from Moscow to Krasnodar (M4) and from there to Sochi (M27) is very poor; the city itself is "strung" on one highway (Kurortny Prospekt), which always stands in traffic jams. A narrow serpentine leads to the ski resort of Krasnaya Polyana, where buses hardly travel. There are practically no motels on the whole road, few places to eat without the risk of poisoning. To radically change the situation, huge forces and means were needed. Was there enough time, equipment and money to create a miracle in six and a half years?
Since then, I have traveled along the M4 and M27 highways many times, watched how they are being reconstructed, how modern transport interchanges appear in Sochi, and Olympic facilities and hotels are being built. And before the Olympics there was absolutely nothing left. At the end of November, I decided: it was time to make an “inspection trip” from Moscow to Sochi in order to personally check the “road to the Olympics” (as my article was called in June 2007).
To the sea
Honestly, the M4 highway Don was really lucky. Six years ago, it was mainly two-lane - no better and no worse than other Russian routes. And half a century ago, in the early 1960s, most of it was a primer at all! Now from Moscow to Voronezh and a little further there is a modern highway. At least four lanes, dividing and enclosing barriers, interchanges at two levels, partially - lighting, speed 110–130 km / h. Beauty - the first 500 km can be flown in five hours. True, it’s not free: in four sections, they will take 190 rubles for travel in a passenger car. during the day and a little less at night. While there are no queues in front of payment points, they promise that they will not appear in the future.
The M4 Don track has changed for the better in recent years. The M4 Don track has changed for the better in recent years. The M4 Don track has changed for the better in recent years.
Just at the end of November, the Avtodor state-owned company, which manages the road, commissioned two more high-speed sections. One is bypassing Voronezh (492-517th km), the second is bypassing the village of Tarasovsky in the Rostov region (877-892nd km). While both are open to everyone, but closer to summer, they will also start to charge for a comfortable ride around Voronezh; the second new site is likely to remain free.
In general, now 1020 km of the highway correspond to the first category and the title "highway". But the whole road is more than 1, 500 km! Alas, until some sites in the Rostov region, especially in the area of Losev and Pavlovsk, in the Krasnodar Territory, the road passes through settlements with their inevitable “charms”. They promise to pass these segments after the Olympics - until the beginning of 2018. However, by and large it’s a sin to complain - you can easily get to Krasnodar (1300 km) “in two wheels” in one light day (12-14 hours).
Don't like to drive without stopping? With anything, and with the service on Don today, everything is fine. Enough of gas stations, and motels, and places where you can eat tasty and inexpensive. And in two or three years, as promised, every 40-60 km multifunctional centers will open (gas stations, motels, shops, cafes, parking, washing, service, etc.). On each side of the road!
Along the shore
M27 road leads from the village of Dzhubga in the Sochi region and further to the border with Abkhazia. Just nothing - 220 km, but what! The mountain serpentine then takes off, then goes down to the very edge of the sea, then leaves to the side, and everywhere - loops, loops … If this road was deserted, it would have been a pleasure for a sports enthusiast, but now it is packed with trucks to the eyeballs. This is the only highway connecting the resort with the "Big Land", and cargoes are continuously moving along it - construction materials, equipment, products. Six years ago it was clear: it was impossible to expand and “straighten” it. Theoretically, it would be necessary to pull a new highway - to beat tunnels through the mountains, but this is a task for future generations. And now the road was repaired, strengthened and, where possible, made a third, overtaking lane. Alas, there are very few such sites.
The M4 Don track has changed for the better in recent years. The M4 Don track has changed for the better in recent years. The M4 Don track has changed for the better in recent years.
They say that on an empty road, locals pass this distance in four and a half hours. Hard to believe: dangerous! In a word, the most problematic section of the route from Moscow to Sochi has remained long and corky, especially if you are “lucky” and run into a column of overloaded KAMAZ trucks.
Dembelsky chord
So in the army is called the work that remains to be done by the senior officer before leaving the reserve. This mood now reigns in many construction sites of the city. Two months before the start of the Olympics, nine out of ten Olympic transport facilities have already been completed, only some finishing work remained. Here, we can say that Sochi was lucky - thanks to the Olympics, there were wide highways, a bypass road, and ultra-modern junctions. If there were no competitions, in our lifetime the city would not have received anything like this. But at what cost it came - a separate conversation.
Only one transport facility is not completed - an understudy of Kurortny Prospekt; however, the fact that they didn’t have time to pass it to the Olympics became clear a long time ago. It turned out to be too complicated: it passes through the mountains with a series of bridges, junctions and tunnels. The first stage has been completed, and another 16 tunnels have to be broken in the course of the second and third! Finish the track by the next landmark sporting event - the World Cup.
But in any case, the roads to Sochi make an impression, especially if you remember what happened here before. So, let's go to the Olympics? Alas, it will not work. Because the entrance to Big Sochi will be closed for two months.
Like in the capital
Actually, our authorities should not take up experience: in 1980 Moscow was also closed from visitors - just in case. And Muscovites were urged to leave the city if work was not related to the Games. We decided to do the same in 2014. Entrance of transit and non-resident transport to Sochi will be limited from the beginning of January to the end of March. At the Magri checkpoint, upon entering the city, they will inspect all vehicles, and pass through only with local numbers or special passes. But the checks will begin much earlier - even on the M4 highway, long before the sea appears outside the window. And most tourists will be offered not even to try to drive towards the resort, since there is no good reason. The presence of a ticket to the competition is not considered as such.
Near the highway opened a lot of modern services. Near the highway opened a lot of modern services. Near the highway opened a lot of modern services.
In the fall, construction began on an intercepting parking lot for 1, 400 cars in Goryachy Klyuch, halfway between Krasnodar and Dzhubga, for those who still decided to drive a car. Here he will have to be left: next - by train. The organizers assure: the trip will be quick and comfortable. Trucks that carry the goods necessary for the city and the Games will be checked several times on the M27 highway using X-ray machines, then they will also be braked at the Magri checkpoint in a special parking lot: entry to Sochi is only for them at night so as not to interfere with the holiday.
Those who still break through here, like the locals, will not find paradise riding through the streets. A new traffic scheme will operate: in addition to a number of restrictions on entry into some sectors of the city, special “Olympic” lanes are introduced in the center and in the area of sports facilities to serve the Games. Ordinary cars are forbidden to stand on them, the punishment is 5000 rubles. plus evacuation of the vehicle. For any ignoring the "Olympic" markings and road signs, a fine is also 3000 rubles. And parking along the roads will be paid for two months - from 50 to 100 rubles. at one o'clock. For locals in the city, they will open intercepting parking lots for 7, 000 places - in the city center, on Bythe, in Khost, Matsest, Adler. The same sites will serve as temporary parking lots. So use, dear residents of Sochi and guests of the city, public transport - the benefit of the Olympics routes will be up to a thousand new buses, ultra-modern electric trains will run …
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For the sake of the Olympics in traffic rules there are new signs. For the sake of the Olympics in traffic rules there are new signs. For the sake of the Olympics in traffic rules there are new signs.
And this is not all: according to the decree of the president, all guests arriving at the Olympics are required to submit documents for temporary registration within three days. The requirement does not apply only to athletes and hotel guests - the administration will issue documents for them.
So, perhaps, I will not go to Sochi in my car - at least until the end of March. More expensive to yourself!
Five-ring curtain
In fact, entry restrictions are practiced in all cities where major sporting events take place. And the “Olympic” lanes on the roads are also not our invention. Such were, for example, in the Olympic Turin; there it was impossible to drive into the zones where certain tournaments were held by car. He left the car in an intercepting parking lot, and then a special bus. Beijing was closed at the time of the Olympics, but there are always restrictions on entry into the city even for local motorists, while foreigners can hardly be found in cars in China.
But closing for a while is not just a city, but a whole region - already our know-how. There are two explanations for this. The first is security: Sochi is located in the North Caucasus, in a very turbulent region. The second - it is connected with the whole country by a single highway plus one railway line. Sochi is already one of the most motorized Russian cities: 350, 000 cars are registered here; by the load on the transport system, the resort even overtook Moscow. And if fans still come in large numbers? The arguments are fair, only they were well known, even when it was decided to hold the Olympics in Sochi. The question is - who did it stop?
Such ultra-modern roads and interchanges, as in Sochi, you will not see anywhere in Russia, even in Moscow. Such ultra-modern roads and interchanges, as in Sochi, you will not see anywhere in Russia, even in Moscow. Such ultra-modern roads and interchanges, as in Sochi, you will not see anywhere in Russia, even in Moscow.
