Redevelopment of Moscow streets

Over the years of Moscow's improvement, we have developed layout transport plans for more than 400 streets with a total length of over 1,000 kilometres. The developed design covers streets of all typologies - from small alleys to large transport and interchange hubs.

As part of the layout transport plans project, we create a safe and comfortable urban environment ‘from facade to facade’, aimed at all users - from motorists to pedestrians and tourists. Our solutions have already been implemented and have proven their effectiveness: traffic speeds are increasing, accident rates are decreasing, the environment is becoming more comfortable, and pedestrians and public transport are being prioritised.

Tverskaya Zastava Square

Tverskaya Zastava Square is a major transport hub with two metro stations, an MCC station and Belorussky railway station. It is the western gate of the capital and one of the entrances to the centre of Moscow from St. Petersburg and Sheremetyevo Airport. It is a historical place and the business centre of the city.

The square serves a significant automobile traffic connecting the centre of Moscow with the northern districts. Major thoroughfares - 1st Tverskaya-Yamskaya, 1st and 2nd Brest Streets, Gruzinsky Val and Leningradsky Prospekt - start from the square.

The task of the project was to take into account traffic flows, to model options, to ensure traffic safety and not to aggravate congestion.

We reorganised traffic, upgraded parking, developed ground transport route schemes, returned the tram line, organised pedestrian routes, added navigation, bicycle parking and bicycle rental stations.

After the reconstruction, the square became more convenient for pedestrians and traffic flows were organised. Ground transport services have improved, and the tram has returned. Transport stops are located closer to the metro and railway station entrances, and the public garden with the Gorky monument has become a cosy resting place for citizens and guests.

Sadovoye ring

Sadovoye Ring is the main artery of the central part of Moscow. This street accumulates the traffic of the city centre, distributing it to the highways leading to the outskirts.

The project task was to preserve the capacity of the Garden Ring streets and organise convenient ground interchanges.

We reorganised traffic, reconstructed squares, worked out traffic patterns for surface transport, brought it out of the tunnels to the surface, creating interchange hubs near metro stations. Pavements were widened, landscaping was added, new pedestrian crossings, navigation, bicycle parking and bicycle rental stations were added.

As a result of the reconstruction, traffic on the Garden Ring is carried out according to the 3-5 lanes scheme: three lanes on bridges and in tunnels, and five lanes on other sections, from which traffic is distributed to the adjacent highways and streets.

The reconstruction significantly improved the pedestrian environment: pavements were widened and landscaped. All streets are equipped with convenient stops for surface urban passenger transport (SUT). Bus routes were moved out of tunnels at important intersections - Oktyabrskaya, Dobryninskaya and Taganskaya Squares - with convenient connections to the metro and other modes of transport.

City Streets:

Novaya Basmannaya

Novaya Basmannaya is a historical street in Basmanny District of the Central Administrative District of Moscow, connecting Krasnye Vorota with Razgulyai Square. It is a small street with historical buildings. The street had two wide lanes of traffic and chaotic parking, as well as a trolleybus route running along it.

We applied our standard approach of reducing the width of the lanes to standard widths, allowing both private and public transport to pass unimpeded. Through this reduction, the pavements have been widened. The project also includes space on the carriageway for a cycle lane.

City Streets:

Krasnaya Presnya

Krasnaya Presnya is a street in the Central Administrative District of Moscow, in the Presnya District. It is a major city street in the centre. Previously, traffic on the street was organised with four lanes in each direction and angled car parks along the edges of the street, which did not allow for a continuous infrastructure for public transport.

We analysed the street space house-to-house and considered both the need for parking and the need for a continuous bus lane. A continuous bus lane was created along the entire street and new pedestrian-friendly pedestrian crossings were provided. The car parks were moved to separate double carriageways so as not to interfere with bus traffic.

The result is a balanced space that takes into account existing car traffic and the need for wide pavements, making it convenient for pedestrians to walk to the metro, as well as to walk to cafes and shops.

District Streets:

Chertanovskaya Street

Chertanovskaya Street in the south of Moscow connects the districts of Chertanovo Severnoe, Tsentralnoe and Yuzhnoe. The street runs several blocks parallel to Varshavskoye Shosse and serves the function of transport distribution to residential neighbourhoods. Several bus routes run along the street, while the main transport function is performed by a tram line. The traffic was organised as three lanes in each direction, separated in the middle by a tram line.

The concept proposed to reduce the number of lanes on the linear sections of the street to two in each direction, and to use the third lane for parking. Tram boarding platforms were significantly improved - their width was doubled, and bus stops were made in so-called ‘anti-pockets’, on the protrusions of the pavements in the parking zone.

Concepts with additional turning lanes and new pedestrian crossings were developed for each major intersection based on traffic flow modelling.

District Streets::

Bratislavskaya street

Bratislavskaya Street is located in the South-Eastern District of Moscow, in the Maryino District. The street is one of the key arteries of the neighbourhood - all major shops, cafes and social facilities are located here. However, a large number of cars parked chaotically along the facades and on the pavements prevented pedestrians from travelling comfortably.

We moved parking along the street to the right side of the carriageway, organising separate parking pockets. We also created dubbed driveways along the facades with parking spaces. The pavements were widened, separating them from the carriageways and making them continuous along the entire street. Convenient approaches to public transport stops and pedestrian crossings were also organised. For the convenience of cyclists, a separate cycle lane was provided.

An important part of the project concept was the competent organisation of traffic on the Big and Small Bratislava Circles. On the Big Circle, the exits were reorganised and new pedestrian crossings were added. On the Small Circle, the traffic is organised on a ‘turbo ring’ principle, with directional entry and exit ramps to improve capacity.

Lanes:

Bankovskiy lane

Bankovsky Lane is located in the centre of Moscow, in the Basmanny District. Before the reconstruction, it was a typical Moscow alley with narrow pavements and car parks on both sides of the carriageway. At the same time, the alley has many cafes and is popular for strolling.

We have organised parking in pockets for residents of nearby houses only. Spaces where there are no residential entrances and cafes are located on the ground floors were used to widen the pavements and arrange summer verandas for cafes.

Lanes:

Starosadsky Lane

Starosadsky Lane is located in the centre of Moscow, in Basmanny District. It is a small lane with historical buildings, the dominant architectural point of which is the Peter and Paul Lutheran Cathedral. The alley is a popular place for walks, including among tourists. Before the reconstruction it was an ordinary alley with narrow pavements.

We organised parking in pockets and reduced the width of lanes on the carriageway, which made it possible to widen the pavements. At the intersection with Petrovigsky Lane, a curved carriageway was organised to reduce vehicle speeds and improve safety.

Embankments:

Ovchinnikovskaya Embankment

Ovchinnikovskaya Embankment is located in the Central District, in the Zamoskvorechye neighbourhood. Before the reconstruction, with relatively low-intensity traffic, the traffic was travelling in one direction with two lanes. Parking was organised along the facades, and the remaining small space was given to pedestrians. Access to the pavement along the canal was limited and walking along it was uncomfortable.

We reduced the carriageway to one lane, which allowed us to organise a walking area along the canal, separated from the carriageway by trees and small architectural forms. Pedestrian pavements along the facades were also widened, and parking spaces were organised in special pockets. Three new pedestrian crossings were added to conveniently connect the neighbourhoods with the promenade zone along the Vodotvodny Canal.

Embankments:

Kosmodamianskaya Embankment

Kosmodamianskaya Embankment is a large urban embankment along the Moskva River in the Zamoskvorechye district. Before the reconstruction, traffic along the embankment was four lanes. Car parks and public transport stops were organised on the development side. The embankment had many empty unused spaces on the carriageway and excessively wide lanes, while the pedestrian part along the river was poorly organised.

A popular walking area with beautiful views of the high-rise on the opposite bank was a dreary space covered in tarmac. The popularity of the embankment route among cyclists provoked conflicts with pedestrians. There were no crossings to the embankment from residential development.

We carried out traffic flow modelling, which allowed us to eliminate one of the lanes of traffic away from the centre. By reducing the carriageway along the river, a cycleway was created. Five new pedestrian crossings were created, linking residential neighbourhoods with the riverside walking area. The pedestrian crossings are equipped with traffic lights and safety islands. Parking pockets were organised. The width of traffic lanes was brought up to standard and surplus carriageway space was allocated for landscaping and planting.

Small squares:

Lefortovskaya Square

Lefortovskaya Square is a small square in the Basmanny district of Moscow, next to which Russia's largest technical university, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, is located. Before the reconstruction, it was a regulated intersection with five directions of traffic. A large number of regulation phases on the traffic lights led to long waiting times for green signal for motorists and pedestrians, mainly students, which often provoked red light crossing and road accidents.

The intersection was drastically reconstructed and an unregulated roundabout was introduced. This completely eliminated traffic delays in the area and also made it much easier for pedestrians to cross the carriageway. The roundabout was designed to the minimum parameters, taking into account the trajectory of utility vehicles and urban passenger transport.

Small squares:

Artplay Square

A small unnamed square in the centre of Moscow, not far from Kursky Station, near the Artplay design centre. Before the reconstruction, it was a triangular intersection of small streets with a tram line running along one side of the triangle. The square was a place with chaotic parking. The entrance to the design centre was not decorated in any way and the pedestrian environment could be described as uncomfortable.

Part of the area was dedicated to widening the pavements, where trees were subsequently planted. The carriageways were reduced, and parking pockets were organised for people with limited mobility and for taxis. They also provided for the organisation of a bycicle lane.

Major transport and interchange hubs:

Savelovskaya Square

Savelovsky Railway Station Square is a major interchange hub with two metro stations and an MCC station, through which significant vehicular traffic passes. The square is an important hub for interchanges with public transport serving the Savelovsky district and the north of Moscow along the Dmitrovskoye Highway.

Prior to reconstruction, the square had unorganised parking, approaches to public transport stops were difficult, and bus and trolleybus routes travelling towards the north of Moscow transited the square, stopping at a considerable distance from the station and metro entrances. A transit flow of cars from the Third Transport Ring also passed through the square.

We reorganised the transit traffic by redirecting it to the south side of the square. The square in front of the station was given over to organising platforms for boarding and disembarking passengers on buses arriving from all directions. Part of the Hub space was allocated for car parking and an area for boarding and disembarking taxi passengers. We provided ground pedestrian crossings accessible for people with limited mobility along the main directions of movement through the square. The remaining spaces were given over to landscaping.

Small transport and interchange hubs:

Tramway stop Komissariat Bridge

A small unnamed square in the centre of Moscow, in the Zamoskvorechye district, located near Ovchinnikovskaya Embankment. Before the reconstruction, it was an unorganised space with driveways, parking and a tram stop located on the carriageway.

We envisaged a pedestrian square with a tram stop with platforms raised to the level of the tram entrance. The carriageway arrangement has been revised, diverting traffic away from the tram tracks. Parking has been reorganised and convenient pedestrian crossings to the square with the stop have been provided.