The Moscow Automobile Ring Road (), or MKAD (), is a ring road running predominantly on the city border of Moscow, with a length of 108.9km (67.7mi) and 35 exits (including ten interchanges). Completed in 1962, the road has a speed limit of 100km/h.

History

The growth of traffic in and around Moscow in the 1950s made city planners realise that Russia's largest metropolis needed a bypass to reroute incoming traffic from major roads that run through the city. Construction started in 1956. Opened in 1962, the MKAD had four asphalt lanes and ran 108.9 kilometres along the city's borders. Although not then a freeway, it featured interchanges at major junctions, very few traffic lights, and a speed limit of .

From 1960 to 1984 the MKAD ran around the administrative boundary of Moscow, but in the 1980s the city began annexing territory outside the beltway. In December 2002, Bulvar Dmitriya Donskogo became the first Moscow Metro station to open beyond the limits of the MKAD.

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

Route

Gallery

See also

Ring roads in Moscow:

• Boulevard Ring

• Garden Ring

• Third Ring Road

• Central Ring Road

Notes and references

External links

• The MKAD on Google Maps.

• A view of the MKAD from a pedestrian bridge.