Leningradsky Prospekt

Leningradsky Prospekt ( _ru. Ленинградский проспект), or Leningrad Avenue, is a major radial avenue in Moscow, Russia. It continues the path of Tverskaya Street and 1st Tverskaya-Yamskaya Street north-west from Belorussky Rail Terminal, and changes the name once again to Leningrad Highway past the Sokol metro station. The Highway continues its way to Saint Petersburg via Tver (not unlike Moskovsky Prospekt in Saint Petersburg, which is named after, and leads to, Moscow).

Until 1957, Leningradsky Prospekt was part of Leningrad Highway (Petersburg Highway prior to 1924). Both avenues retain their Lenin-related names after the reinstatement of historical Saint Petersburg name .

History

Old road to Tver, changing its course over Middle Ages, settled in its present site in 16th century. The name "Peterburskoye Schosse" (Highway) was established when the road was properly paved in 1786-1790 century.

The most important historical building on the road, Gothic Revival Petrovsky Palace, was built in 1776-1780 by Matvey Kazakov as the last station of royal journeys from Saint Petersburg to Moscow. Coaches for lesser classes arrived and departed from Vsekhsvyatskoye village near present-day Sokol metro station.

In 1830s, general Alexander Bashilov, then employed by the Governor of Moscow, planned the first regular grid of city streets north from Petrovsky Palace; two streets in the area still retain Bashilov's name. Territories south from the highway - Khodynka field - were used mostly for military training. Bashilov also laid down the boulevards along the highway; some of them remain to date. Soon, the beginning of Petersburg Highway turned into an upper-class recreation area, with country restaurants and racetrack (completed in 1883). Smolensky Rail station (forerunner of present-day Belorussky Rail Terminal) was inaugurated in 1870. Between 1882 and 1896, Khodynka housed the national Exhibition of industry and arts, later transferred to Nizhny Novgorod faiground.

In 1890s-1900s, the highway was gradually urbanized, with factories and residential quarters, ranging from working-class barracks to luxury country homes of Morozov family, Nikolay Eichenwald and Fyodor Schechtel.

Modern History

Sokol Settlement of single-family homes, built in early 1920s near the junction of Petersburg and Volokolamsk highway, remains one of the last two single-family neighborhoods in Moscow (the other one is Serebryany Bor).

Since 1910s, Khodynka has been used as Moscow's airfield, and housed Moscow's Central Airport until 1950s; irregular DOSAAF flights continued until 1980s. Leningradsky Highway (beyond city limits) is now home to Sheremetyevo Airport, the former largest airport in Moscow, which makes the avenue connecting the city center with the highway even more important street in Moscow. Local transportation developed from trams (1901-2005) to trolleybuses (1933) and subway (1938).

Leningradsky Prospekt itself is home to the Dynamo Stadium (1928) and CSKA Moscow winter stadium. Educational institutions include:
* Moscow Aviation Institute
* State Financial Academy
* Moscow Automobile Road Institute
* Moscow Food Institute

Notable buildings include Triumph-Palace skyscraper and the 1730s baroque church of All Saints ( [http://sobory.ru/article/index.html?object=01905 photographs] ) near Sokol station. It's bell tower is one of Russia's leaning towers.

Highway construction, 2005-2008

Since 2005, the city of Moscow is engaged in a multi-billion project of converting Leningradsky radius, from downtown Tverskaya Street to MKAD, into a 12-lane, non-stop freeway with frontage roads. Authorities declare the goals of improving transportation with remote districts beyond MKAD and Sheremetyevo Airport, however, the worst bottleneck on the road, in the city of Khimki, is not addressed at all. In addition, the project began with irreversible destruction of public tram route along the Prospekt. In March, 2006, the approved project stages were valued at 57 billion roubles (2.1 billion US Dollars) [http://www.izvestia.ru/gorod/article3093141/] ; the city has declared absolute cap on this project at 1 trillion roubles (38 billion US dollars).

The plan includes the following stages (from city center to MKAD):

* Central segment (startin Q2, 2007 to be completed 2009) [http://www.izvestia.ru/gorod/article3093141/]
** Redevelopment of Pushkin Square with underground tunnels and shopping space
** Redevelopment of Triumphalnaya Square
** Redevelopment of Belorussky Rail Terminal Square
** Tunnel between Pushkin Square and Belorussky Rail Terminal
** Rearranging traffic in parallel Brestky Streets, Bronnaya Streets etc.

*Leningradsky Prospekt segment
** Additional overpass at the Third Ring crossing (completed 2006)
** Tunnel near Dinamo (Metro) (completed December 2006)
** Tunnel near Aeroport (Metro) with ramps to Khodynka residential district (completed February, 2007 [http://www.rg.ru/2007/02/06/tonnel.html] )
** Raised overpass connecting the Prospekt with Leningradsky Highway (to be completed 2008)

*Leningradsky Highway segment (to be completed 2008)
** Redevelopment near Voykovskaya
** Non-stop crossing with Festivalnaya Street
** Construction of a second six-lane Leningradsky Bridge
** Rebuilding MKAD crossing

So far, there are no definite plans of reconstructing the highway in Khimki. There are plans to build a bypass private toll road to the airport currently in design stage.

Public transportation access

Daytime traffic is frequently paralyzed by construction detours, thus the only reliable transportation is through Zamoskvoretskaya Line of Moscow Metro (Belorusskaya to Sokol).

References

* Russian: П.В.Сытин, "Из истории московских улиц", М, 1948
* [http://www.joneslanglasalle.ru/NR/rdonlyres/6D72F737-1559-4EB4-ACCE-F4194C2CF053/0/LeningradskyExpansion.pdf Construction schedule in English]
* [http://www.maps-moscow.com/index.php?chapter_id=149&data_id=229&do=view_single Pushkin Square Under Threat - The Moscow Times]
* [http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,1860208,00.html Pushkin Square tunnel - The Guardian]