A working group comprising representatives of Moscow, the Moscow Region and the Russian Transportation Ministry has exposed more than 900 violations of construction regulations on the Moscow Ring Road (MKAD).
Deputy Moscow Mayor Nikolai Lyamov, who is in charge of transport and road construction issues, told government daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta that the city needs new roads leading to shopping malls built along the MKAD to reduce the enormous traffic load on the city's key beltway.
Lyamov said the owners of shopping malls and stores located near the MKAD will have to pay for the construction of new local roads from their own pocket.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has pledged to solve the Russian capital's transport problems. When appointed to the mayor's post, he said he will take "extraordinary measures" to eliminate traffic jams. President Dmitry Medvedev has said he will personally oversee the effort.
Sobyanin replaced long-serving Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov, fired in late September by Medvedev over a "loss of confidence." Luzhkov had in particular been criticized for his inability to cope with Moscow's notorious traffic jams.
MOSCOW, November 25 (RIA Novosti)
