Brotherhood of the Ring: travel time around the Sea of Azov will be reduced by five hours

President Vladimir Putin has confirmed plans to build a ring road around the Sea of Azov, which has become internal to the Russian Federation. The office of Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin told Izvestia that the ring will be 1,427 kilometers long, including four-lane sections - 707.1 kilometers, three-lane sections - 116 kilometers, two-lane sections - 603.9 kilometers. By 2030, the ring will increase the capacity of the southern road network three times, and the travel time on the route around the Azov Sea will be reduced by five hours. About where the highway will pass and how much it will cost - in the material of "Izvestia".

The "Azov Ring" will pass through which cities

Russian President Vladimir Putin at a combined direct line and press conference on December 19 confirmed plans to build a highway around the Sea of Azov. It should link new regions and unload the route through the Crimean bridge.

"We plan to build a ring road around the Sea of Azov, which has become an inland sea of the Russian Federation. It will be the same road as the "Tavrida" in Crimea: four-lane traffic with all the advantages of such a highway," the head of state said.

Photo: TASS/Eric Romanenko

According to him, the first 40-kilometer-long section of the road from Taganrog, Rostov Region, to Mariupol has already been built.

As told "Izvestia" in the office of Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin, the road around the Sea of Azov will unite such cities as Rostov-on-Don, Taganrog, Novoazovsk, Mariupol, Berdyansk, Melitopol, Genichesk, Dzhankoy, Kerch, Taman, Temryuk, Krasnodar, Azov. The ring will include sections of the M-4 "Don" and "Tavrida" highways, connecting the Crimean bridge. The length of the new ring will be 1427 km, including four lanes - 707.1 km, three lanes - 116 km and two lanes - 603.9 km.

Clean up the slicks: how the oil spill in the Black and Azov Seas is being cleaned up

The cleanup is being carried out by EMERCOM staff and volunteers

It will also consist of roads already under construction and open road sections. By order of the President, work is underway to link the M-4 "Don" road with seamless access to the Crimean bridge (opening in 2024), added in the office of Marat Khusnullin.

In September 2024, Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin reported that the highway is planned to be completed by 2030, and up to 600 billion rubles are allocated for its implementation.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

- Most of the highway will pass through the existing road sections of regional importance, but there will also be new sections, as well as city bypasses," Ilya Ponomarev, an expert of the Public Council under the Ministry of Construction, told Izvestia. - Bridge crossings over the Don and Kuban, if they are required, raise questions, but these are quite solvable technical problems for road builders who have experience of M-12 and the Don.

The R-280 "Novorossiya" highway, which is more than 400 km long and runs along the coast of the Sea of Azov in the DNR, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions, will be widened and will have exits to the sea. Part of the highway has already been repaired. A 27-kilometer section running from Novoazovsk to Mariupol was opened after major repairs. The construction of bypasses of Mariupol, Dzhankoy, Gvardeyskoye is planned, noted in the office of Deputy Prime Minister.

As part of the development of the "Azov Ring" on the territory of the new regions it is planned to build a highway R-150 on the section of the bypass of Starobelsk, as well as the formation of a bypass of Lugansk (from R-260 through R-258 to R-150). The completion of works on the "Azov Ring" is planned until 2030, taking into account the possibility of advanced financing, the office noted.

"Izvestia" sent inquiries to the Ministry of Transport and Rosavtodor.

How logistics in the Azov region will be simplified

- "The Azov Ring is not only a highway, but also an investment axis for the region," says Ilya Ponomarev. - Russia is not spoiled by the coastline in the southern latitudes, and the emergence of a highway duplicating the Don highway along the eastern shore of the Azov Sea will create prerequisites for the recreational development of these places, taking the load off the busy direction to Krasnodar - Tuapse / Novorossiysk - Sochi, with direct access to the Crimean Bridge.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Sergei Malgavko

In the north, theroad will connect the new industrial centers of Mariupol and Melitopol into a single agglomeration, will give impetus to the development of the Azov coast of Crimea, will include the Chongar route to Crimea at full capacity.

According to Ilya Ponomarev, the engineering and geological conditions for the construction of the "Azov Ring" are favorable. There is no complicated relief and geology there, as on the Caucasian coast, so the natural risks are significantly lower than in Sochi.

- Highways are being built quickly now, and the "Azov Ring" can be launched in five years," Salavat Ageyev, Deputy Executive Director of the National Association of Building Materials and Construction Industry Producers (NOPSM) told Izvestia. - The country has industrial capacities and specialists. Now they are involved in the M-12 highway that runs to Yekaterinburg. When the M-12 highway is completed, they will be transferred to the Azov Ring.

- The ring road around the inland sea of Russia will increase the accessibility of new regions, including for cargo transportation. The highway will give an impetus to the development of the socio-economic potential of the new subjects and will contribute to improving the living standards of citizens. In general, the ring road will increase investment attractiveness in the passing territories, will give impetus to housing construction, business development, creation of new jobs, will contribute to the increase in tourist traffic, - noted in the office of Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Konstantin Mikhalchevsky

After completion of works on major repairs, reconstruction and construction of highways on the route around the Azov Sea, the travel time will be reduced by five hours, and the carrying capacity will increase three times, they added.