Moscow Ring Road

Moscow Ring Road (MKAD) Московская Кольцевая Автомобильная Дорога
MKAD on Moscow map[1]
Route information
Length:	108.9 km (67.7 mi)
Existed:	1961 – present
Location
Major cities:	Moscow
Highway system
Russian Federal Highways

The Moscow Automobile Ring Road (Russian: Московская Кольцевая Автомобильная Дорога, Moskovskaya Koltsevaya Avtomobilnaya Doroga), or MKAD (МКАД), is a ring road encircling the parts of the City of Moscow, the capital of Russia. The length of the road is 108.9 km, and the number of exits is 35 (including 10 interchanges).

History

The growth of traffic in and around Moscow in the 1950s made the city planners realise Russia's largest metropolis needed a bypass to redirect incoming traffic from major roads that run through the city. Opened in 1961, the MKAD had four lanes of asphalt running 108.9 kilometres along the city borders. Although not yet a freeway, it featured interchanges at major junctions, very few traffic lights and a speed limit of 100 km/h (62 mph).

For a long time the MKAD served as the administrative boundary of Moscow city, until in the 1980s Moscow started annexing territory outside the beltway. In December 2002 Bulvar Dmitriya Donskogo became the first Moscow Metro station that opened beyond the limits of MKAD.^[2]

In 1995-1999 the road was widened from the initial four to ten lanes, while all intersections became grade-separated, bridges were built to accommodate pedestrians, traffic lights were removed, and a solid concrete barrier was installed in the median. In 2001 all slow-moving vehicles were banned from entering the MKAD and the renovated road received a freeway designation from the mayor's office.

Gallery

Interchange of MKAD and Kashirskoye Highway in Moscow  MKAD interchange with Moscow–Saint Petersburg motorway  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange  MKAD interchange with Molodogvardeyskaya street  MKAD interchange with Dmitrovskoe highway  MKAD interchange with Verkhniye polya street  MKAD interchange with M2  MKAD near Strogino District  MKAD interchange with Profsoyuznaya street  Yaroslavskoe highway interchange  Interchange of MKAD and Volgogradsky Prospekt in Moscow

See also

Ring roads in Moscow:

• Garden Ring
• Boulevard Ring
• Third Ring Road

Comparison to other ring roads encircling big cities:

• Saint Petersburg Ring Road
• London Orbital motorway
• Washington, DC Beltway
• A23 in Vienna
• Boulevard périphérique in Paris
• Grande Raccordo Anulare in Rome
• Autopista de Circunvalación M-40 and M-50 (Spain) in Madrid

Notes and references

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to MKAD (Moscow).

• The MKAD on Google Maps.
• A view of the MKAD from a pedestrian bridge.
• A view of the MKAD from a helicopter.