Congestion targeted in Moscow to boost business

Date: 5/11/2012

Authorities in Moscow are tackling traffic congestion as a way to help boost business in the city and allow people to travel around more freely.

Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, has called for the capital to do more to appeal to businesses and the first step is to target problems on the road.

Since the Soviet Union collapsed 20 years ago, cars have become more affordable and therefore there are many more people driving to work, reports Reuters.

At the busiest times traffic can be stationary with motorists double parking or coming to a standstill on pavements, making them impassable for pedestrians.

It has become a commonly stated reason for foreign investors not to get involved in the city as congestion and pollution make it a less appealing place to live.

Many drivers have been able to pay bribes in order to get out of traffic and parking offences, which is another practice which the authorities are keen to crack down on.

Now drivers will be charged 50 roubles (£1) an hour to park in one of the designated parking spaces created in the city centre.

Under a pilot scheme 500 of these have been set up and anyone who does not pay the fee with be sent an automatic fine of 2,500 roubles.

Sergei Polikov, a Professional Driver, said: "I think the project will benefit Moscow.

"I don't know if the authorities will succeed yet, because all of the previous attempts have been doomed to failure. But in any case they are working in the right direction."

Under the new tighter system enforcement will include illegally parked cars being photographed as evidence of the breach.

Data published by the city's transport and infrastructure department shows that the average car journey undertaken during rush hour lasts 66 minutes.

The only place in the world where rush hour journeys take longer is Tokyo with a typical journey to work lasts 67 minutes.

Moscow officials want to cut the commute time to 50 minutes by 2025 and for more of the 11.5 million people who live in the city to use public transport.

Posted by Nick Anderson

International Transport News and Sustainable Transport News