Every evening Muscovites leave work and stand in traffic jams. In a still stream, residents of the capital exchange jokes, make acquaintances, and share cigarettes, drinks and food. In general, life is in full swing. Only sometimes it seems that these traffic jams appear in the city without apparent reason– in places where there are no accidents, no road works, no reduction in the number of lanes.
MOSLENTA counted the TOP 10 strangest traffic jams in the capital and, together with the data center, tried to find out why they arise “out of the blue.”
Before turning to the data center for clarification, we interviewed the capital’s drivers and found out where in Moscow the most abnormal traffic jams, in their opinion, occur. The list does not include “understandable” places - here are only those where the drivers were unable to explain the traffic jam:
- Nizhnyaya Maslovka street and Savelovskaya overpass
- Third Transport Ring in the area from Volgogradsky to Ryazansky avenues
- The inner side of the Moscow Ring Road from Lipetskaya Street towards Warsaw Highway
- Nikulinskaya street
- External side of the Moscow Ring Road near Crocus City
- Timiryazevskaya street
- Shchukinskaya and Infantry streets
- The outer side of the Moscow Ring Road from Shchelkovskoye Highway
- Mira Avenue near the Severyaninsky overpass
- 2nd and 3rd Vladimir streets
“It is always possible to figure out why there is a traffic jam in a particular place. Another question is that the reasons for the slowdown in traffic, as well as the solution to this issue, may not be obvious and may not be located next to the traffic jam itself, but several kilometers away from it,” says Andrey Mukhortikov, adviser to the head of the data center.
According to him, there are not many of these reasons; they can be counted on one hand. Using the example of several streets from our top ten, Andrei Mukhortikov spoke in more detail about how traffic jams form.
Bottleneck
A classic situation when the number of lanes on the road decreases. For example, from four to two or from three to one. They are typical for exits from the capital - where after the Moscow Ring Road the number of lanes decreases. The road infrastructure beyond the ring road is not developed enough to accommodate a large number of cars.
For example, during the summer season, leaving Moscow is especially difficult along the Leningradskoye, Shchelkovskoye, Volokolamskoye highways and Entuziastov highway. In particular, on Leningradskoe Highway, five lanes within the city turn into three lanes outside the Moscow Ring Road. And every day during the evening rush hours, a traffic jam about five kilometers long forms, and drivers lose up to 25 minutes in this place.
On Shchelkovskoye Highway, four lanes in Moscow turn into two lanes in the region, the length of the traffic jam is about 3.2 km, travel time is 20 minutes.
On Entuziastov Highway and Volokolamsk Highway, the length of traffic jams is about 2 km, travel time is from 10 to 15 minutes.
Almost always, it is for this reason that congestion occurs on radial highways - on Mira Avenue in front of the Severyaninsky overpass, on Butyrskaya Street and on Dmitrovskoye Shosse in front of the Dmitrovskaya metro station (and there are also exits to Rustaveli Street, which aggravate the situation), on Leningradskoye highway in front of Voykovskaya. This is also the reason for traffic jams in the “enchanted place” in the area of Nizhnyaya Maslovka, Butyrskaya Street and Savelovskaya Overpass. It seems that drivers here simply refuse to go further and deliberately reduce the speed from 60-80 km/h to some unfortunate 10-15. That is, they do everything to make you suffer in traffic jams from the Riga overpass, so that later you will be surprised to discover: there are no accidents, everything is clear ahead, and ask the logical question: “What was that?!” And the reason is the merger of several powerful streams with a total width of 7-8 lanes into 4 lanes of the Third Ring..
Worthwhile congress
If it is impossible to leave the highway because of a narrow exit or a traffic jam further on, the “tail” of the traffic jam quickly blocks traffic. For this reason, there is always a stop on the inner side of the TTR before the exit to Mira Avenue. Instead of the intended one lane, drivers often occupy two at once. As a result, instead of three lanes, only two go straight! It turns out the same “bottleneck” effect, only not because of the narrowing of the road, but because of the “taking away” of the lane by those standing. After all, those who are still 3-4 kilometers from the bottleneck also have to slow down.
It is impossible to completely get rid of the problem in this part of the Third Transport Ring, says Mukhortikov. But unloading the flow and making movement freer is quite possible. For example, cover the two-lane exit from the Third Transport Ring onto Mira Avenue with a traffic island so that cars from the Third Ring will enter the avenue at a higher speed. Thus, the lanes on the Third Transport Ring will be cleared faster, the speed will increase, and the congestion, if not “disappearing,” will then become noticeably less.
“Problematic” exits are also familiar to those who daily try to exit the outer Third Ring Road in the area of Volgogradsky and Ryazansky Avenues. Even before the start of the reconstruction of both roads, you could spend a couple of hours here in the evening. The reason, as in the case of Nizhnyaya Maslovka, is the incorrect organization of the exit from the Third Transport Ring in the area of Nizhegorodskaya Street and Volgogradsky Prospekt and problems on the avenues themselves, which are not yet able to accommodate the flow from the Third Transport Ring. It is hoped that reconstruction will solve this problem.
Photo: www.stroi.mos.ru
Pulling highways
At some complex intersections, the operation of traffic lights is configured in such a way that one of the directions has priority and travels, for example, 70% of the time the traffic light is operating, while others are “squeezed” and only 10-15% is allocated to them (in each direction). As a rule, priority is given to radial and outbound highways.
It is for this reason that those who regularly travel in the area of 2nd and 3rd Vladimirskaya streets suffer. Now the traffic lights are “pulling” Entuziastov Highway. Moreover, throughout recent years 10 This section of the Moscow road is an area of fairly intensive work. Two projects are being implemented here simultaneously: reconstruction of the highway with the creation of dedicated lanes for public transport and construction of a section of the North-East Expressway.
In addition, the Entuziastov Highway is a road that, even without reconstruction, has a number of narrowed sections of the road. “One of the most unpleasant junctions is near the Aviamotornaya metro station,” says Mukhortikov. “There is a metro, a bridge, traffic lights, traffic in various directions, and tram tracks. We still have to work with him somehow. It is possible to relieve congestion in this area; we see potential for improvement there. But we must say right away that this will be a rather complex set of decisions. It is unlikely that it will be possible to get by only by changing the operation of traffic lights and markings, as we do in most cases. Something larger may be needed here. And in any case, we must wait for the completion of construction work.”
The same problem exists on Nikulinskaya Street, which was noticed by motorists. It is adjacent to Michurinsky Prospekt, which is lined with traffic lights, and Nikulinskaya is left with the “crumbs” of the traffic light cycle. The problem can only be solved by building an overpass or at least expanding it in front of the intersection.
Self-locking intersections
A frequent situation is when, at a “boulevard” intersection, oncoming left-turn traffic does not fit into the designated pockets and blocks each other’s passage on both sides.
In the area of the Tekstilshchiki metro station there were two such intersections before the start of reconstruction. The main traffic jam occurred in a small area, but both those who were planning to leave the Third Transport Ring in this direction and those who were traveling along Volgogradka to the center had to suffer because of it, standing in a traffic jam.
The data center noted that after the reconstruction of the roads is completed, these sections will be significantly relieved of congestion, and congestion on this section of the Third Transport Ring will have to disappear or, in any case, be reduced.
Lack of bands
So many cars enter the road section from adjacent streets that additional lanes and “pockets” are needed for free movement.
Those who drive along the inner side of the Moscow Ring Road from Lipetskaya towards Varshavka suffer from this. There are no bypass routes in this area of Moscow, and everyone who wants to get to the southwest of the capital has to take the Moscow Ring Road. In theory, additional lanes near the exit from the Moscow Ring Road will be able to maintain the flow speed. On ordinary city roads this can be done not only by widening the road, but also by reducing the width of existing lanes from the usual 3.75 or 3.5 meters to 3.25 or 3.15 m. The trouble is that this solution not suitable for the Moscow Ring Road.
Photo: www.stroi.mos.ru
Hardcore offenders
They are always in a hurry, so they don’t want to wait for their turn. When turning or exiting, such drivers occupy the second row of lanes that should go straight and create an obstacle.
Another type of violator is those who try to abruptly change lanes from the far left lane to the far right. Because of such “hurries,” traffic jams can form even where the road has the highest capacity. What can we say about places where there are already too many cars?
The fight against violators has already begun. True, it’s not very noticeable yet. CCTV cameras have been installed on some sections of roads, which should record the wrong entry onto the road or exit from the highway or highway.
The only traffic jam on our list that did not fall under any of the listed reasons is located on Shchukinskaya and Pekhotnaya streets. The reason, according to the data center, turned out to be simple - the reconstruction of the Volokolamsk highway.
For the eyes of an ordinary driver, the situation on this section of the road has not changed for several months. It seemed like the traffic jam was out of nowhere. Drivers usually flew to the exit to Volokolamka, and last couple for weeks you have to trudge along in the company of the same unfortunates. How so?
“It just seems that nothing changes during the reconstruction of the road. Something happens in the work area every day. Most likely, some part of the roadway in this place was slightly “moved” or blocked. This is not very noticeable, but it affects the road capacity,” explains Mukhortikov.
Without exaggeration, traffic jams can be called “the scourge of our time.” This is especially true for Moscow and other megacities. Although they are being fought everywhere, today the result leaves much to be desired. In order not to waste precious hours standing idle in traffic jams, it is advisable to use the Yandex online map. Traffic jams in Moscow can now be tracked on the Moscow Ring Road, on the Volokolamsk and Riga highways and other directions.
The service demonstrates:
- Occupancy of road directions in points (per this moment time and average) in different colors.
- Flow speed in km/h.
- Incident points.
- Dislocation of repair activities.
- Video from Moscow cameras.
Viewing reminder
The congestion indicator of a road segment is demonstrated using different colors:
You can find out the speed by pointing the pointer at the desired section of the route.
Note! In the absence of verified information, the road section is not highlighted using color.
The unit for measuring the presence of congestion is the “score”. Points are reflected in accordance with the intensity of the track.
Workload is measured using a 10-point scale. It looks something like this:
The road congestion forecast is given for 1 hour. It is viewed by dragging the slider onto the Now / In an hour scale to the required indicator.
Note! The Today / Statistics toggle switch needs to be set to the Today indicator.
Events in the direction of interest are also viewed. There is a Traffic Events function for this. When you press this button, signs appear informing you about the situation:
To view the details, check the “Traffic Events” checkbox:
Traffic jam statistics are determined for different days of the week and time of day. To get acquainted with it:
- The switch is set to the Statistics indicator.
- The day of interest is pressed.
- The engine is moved to the required position.
Using the Yandex Traffic jams service, the driver has the opportunity to determine how much time he will lose due to traffic jams. For example, when the average score is 7, this means that the travel time will increase by about 2 times. It should be taken into account that the scale has different settings for different cities. Thus, 6 points in St. Petersburg corresponds to a 5-point situation in Moscow.
On this page you can see a map of traffic jams on the roads in St. Petersburg, as well as traffic jams in Moscow online (traffic jams on the roads of Moscow and St. Petersburg right now). Online maps roads in the cities of St. Petersburg and Moscow, free information from Yandex traffic jams, Automonitor Autoradio and Cityguide navigator for today, traffic jams on the Moscow Ring Road and the Ring Road, show information about traffic jams on highways, streets and main highways with photos. In some places it is difficult to drive along the Vyborg Highway and Kolomyazhsky Avenue. Sverdlovskaya and Arsenalnaya embankments are usually free.
According to the newsletter “Car traffic jams in St. Petersburg”, dedicated to traffic congestion in St. Petersburg, from the Yandex company, the main milestones and trends:
According to the Yandex.Traffic service, December 2009 is the most difficult month for motorists in the entire history of observations. December 2010 - and even more so.
According to Yandex.Traffic, every year the congestion of the streets of St. Petersburg increases by more than 2 points - from 3 points in February 2009 to 5.3 points in February 2010 and more. This large increase is partly due to the unusual snowy winter.
The quietest period for motorists is the New Year holidays. There are fewer traffic jams.
Before the winter of 2010, Monday was the least busy day for several years. Then everything evened out and on all weekdays the number of traffic jams was almost equal.
Residents of St. Petersburg spend almost one and a half times less time in traffic jams than residents of Moscow. about the power of traffic jams. St. Petersburg is similar to Kyiv and Yekaterinburg, but St. Petersburg residents hit the roads later and return home later.
The biggest traffic jams occur on the eve of holidays and in bad weather. Separately, holidays and weather are not so terrible - for example, on April 30, when people left the city before the May holidays, the average traffic congestion was 4.8 points, and on November 10, when it was snowing, it was 5.3 points. In December, when snowfalls coincide with pre-holiday shopping, motorists have the hardest time - the city gets stuck in dense traffic jams. The main traffic jams occur during snowfall, before the May holidays, and during heavy rains. There are few traffic jams under the following conditions: New Year holidays, February 23, March 8, May holidays, June 12, July-August - holiday season, November 4. Traffic jams are distributed almost evenly across the regions:
South direction
districts Kirovsky, northern part of Krasnoselsky, Moskovsky, southern part of Nevsky, Petrodvortsovy and Frunzensky
Northern direction
Vyborgsky, Kalininsky, Kurortny and Primorsky districts
East direction
Krasnogvardeisky districts and the northern part of Nevsky
The most congested (traffic jams on the map above) are the following streets of St. Petersburg: Moskovsky Prospekt (in the center in the morning from Victory Park to the Moscow Gate), the Obvodny Canal embankment, Staronevsky Prospekt is always standing all day, in 30% of cases the Ring Road (ring road) is standing from Murmansk Highway to the Cable-stayed Bridge, in the summer everything is constantly at a standstill on Murmanka and near Ikea-Mega. There is often a traffic jam on Krasnoputilovskaya Street, Mitrofanyevskoe Highway to the center, a traffic jam on Vitebsky Prospect in the morning to the center from Kuznetsovskaya Street, then Blagodatnaya, and so on to Ligovsky Prospekt. In connection with the opening of the Gallery, Ligovsky Avenue is often located from Obvodny to Kuznechny Lane, and almost always in front of the square. Foundry often costs. In the evening after work, the Oktyabrskaya Embankment slows down towards the Volodarsky Bridge, then the Volodarsky Bridge itself, Narodnaya Street and Sortirovochnaya (popularly known simply as Sorting). Slava is moving, although when the Ring Road is standing, everyone goes through Kupchino and there is Slava Street. Often in Lately There is Bolshevikov Avenue near the Dybenko metro station towards Narodnaya Street. In the Ladozhskaya area everything is ungodly. The same picture is observed on Lesnoy Prospekt and Bolshoi Sampsonievsky. Savushka and Testers stand permanently.
The Yandex.Traffic service has identified several dozen “bottlenecks” in the Moscow road system with the greatest difference in speeds before and after the bottleneck. The most unpleasant thing " bottleneck“During the morning rush hour, this is the intersection of Volgogradsky Prospekt and Lyublinskaya Street. During the evening rush hour, drivers lose the most time in traffic jams on Leningradskoye Shosse in front of the Moscow Ring Road.
Here are the main traffic jams in the capital:
IMPORTANT BOTTLE POINTS DURING MORNING RUSH HOURS (7:00 to 10:00):
EXIT FROM LETCHIKA BABUSHKIN STREET TO PROSPECT MIRA
YAROSLAVSKOYE HIGHWAY - FROM THE MKAD EXIT TO THE EXIT OF VESHNYE VOD STREET
HIGHWAY ENTHUSIASTOV - NEAR THE METRO "SHOSSE ENTHUSIASTOV" AND AT THE INTERRORSECTION WITH BUDENNY PROSPECT
NIZHEGORODSKAYA STREET - UNDER THE RAILWAY BRIDGE, THE INTERSECTION OF VOLGOGRADSKY AVENUE AND LYUBLINSKAYA STREET (NEAR THE TEXTILSHCHIKI METRO METRO)
ANDROPOV AVENUE - BEFORE NAGATINSKY BRIDGE, AFTER METRO "KOLOMENSKAYA"
KASHIRSKOE HIGHWAY - AFTER TURNING TO ANDROPOV AVENUE, NEAR THE KASHIRSKAYA METRO
WARSAW HIGHWAY - AFTER MERGER WITH KASHIRSKY HIGHWAY
SEVASTOPOL AVENUE - NEAR HOUSE No. 5, AFTER THE BRIDGE OVER THE RAILWAY TRACKS
CROSSROADS OF LENINSKY AVENUE AND STROITELEY STREET
VERNADSKY AVENUE - INTERSECTION WITH LOMONOSOVSKY AVENUE, NEAR THE UNIVERSITY METRO
VOLOKOLAMSKOYE HIGHWAY - AFTER THE TUNNEL UNDER THE MOSCOW CANAL
LENINGRADSKOYE HIGHWAY - EXIT FROM THE INNER SIDE OF THE MKAD
LENINGRADSKY HIGHWAY NEAR METRO "VOIKOVSKAYA"
THE BEGINNING OF BUTYRSKAYA STREET NEAR THE DMITROVSKAYA METRO STREET
IMPORTANT BOTTLE POINTS DURING EVENING RUSH HOURS (from 18:00 to 21:00) PROSPECT MIRA - AFTER THE INTERCLOSURE AT VDNKH METRO HOURS
GOLOVINSKAYA EMBANKMENT - AT THE HOSPITAL BRIDGE
NIZHNOGORODSKAYA STREET - AFTER THE INTERSECTION WITH THE TTK
ANDROPOV AVENUE - INTERNECTION WITH TROFIMOVA STREET (IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE TTK)
VOLGOGRAD AVENUE - FROM TTR TO LYUBLINSKAYA STREET (TEXTILSHCHIKI METRO)
WARSAW HIGHWAY - BEFORE THE FORK WITH KASHIRSKY HIGHWAY
CROSSROADS OF WARSAW HIGHWAY AND ROSSOSHANSKAYA STREET (NEAR THE METRO STREET "AKADEMIKA YANGELYA STREET")
LENINSKY AVENUE - IN FRONT OF MKAD
CROSSROADS OF LENINSKY AVENUE AND UDALTSOV STREET
CROSSROADS OF MICHURINSKY AVENUE AND LOBACHEVSKOGO STREET
KUTUZOVSKY AVENUE NEAR THE SLAVYANSKY BOULEVARD METRO
INNER SIDE of the Third Transport Ring - AFTER THE OVERSTAND OVER SHMITOVSKY PASSAGE
1ST TVERSKAYA-YAMSKAYA STREET - IN FRONT OF BELORUSSKY STATION SQUARE
TTK - AFTER SAVYOLOVSKAYA OVERSTAND (NIZHNYAYA MASLOVKA STREET)
LENINGRAD HIGHWAY - BEFORE THE EXIT TO THE MKAD
There are many kilometers of traffic jams all over the world, which have become a daily problem for drivers. Traffic jam statistics allow you to obtain up-to-date information on the density of traffic flows. Thanks to this, drivers can avoid busy roads and avoid wasting time in hours-long traffic jams.
Influencing factors
Why do traffic jams occur? Traffic jam statistics reveal the main factors:
- Disorganization of drivers.
- Imperfect road junctions that lead to vehicle collisions.
- Lack of parking lots.
- Growing number.
- Holidays(road congestion increases).
If we consider by month, then most often congestion occurs in winter or early spring. Since the number increases due to weather conditions. In summer people usually go on vacation. Consequently, the number of cars decreases and road passability improves.
Traffic jam statistics by time show that weekday traffic jams on city roads occur in the morning and evening hours (08:00–10:00, 18:00–20:00). At this time, people get to work or school.
Rating of countries by the number of traffic jams
Analytics company Inrix conducts research on traffic congestion in 38 countries. As a result, there are certain statistics for cities and countries. TOP 10 states:
Traffic jam statistics for 2016 show that Thailand ranks 1st in terms of traffic jams. Here, motorists spend 61 hours a year stuck in traffic jams. Russia and the USA together occupy fourth place – 42 hours.
Developing countries are at the top of the rankings as the number of cars has increased due to economic recovery. There are predictions that the number worldwide will double in 20 years. About 90% of them will be in developing countries. Traffic statistics by hour in European countries:
In first place by city is Los Angeles - 104 hours. The only city in the world where drivers are stuck in traffic jams for more than 4 days. Here 80% have their own transport. List of cities:
Another Russian city made it into the top five - Krasnodar (5th place). Here, the density of traffic flows is also increasing due to road construction work on the Don highway.
The situation in the capital of Russia
Traffic statistics in Moscow show that it is the busiest city in Russia. The situation worsens during rainfall and pre-holiday days. The necessary data can be taken from. Traffic statistics by day highlight Monday as the quietest day of the week. Whereas Thursday is considered the hardest day.
On Saturday, mid-day traffic jams can be even worse than on Monday. By time of day on Sunday, traffic congestion is at its lowest level. Traffic jam statistics in Moscow by hour (during the working day):
In the morning the direction to the center is busy. This is evidenced by Yandex research. Traffic jams. According to statistics, it will take 5 times longer (than in the absence of congestion) to get from the Moscow Ring Road to the Garden Ring. In the evening the following routes are difficult to pass: New Arbat– Kutuzovsky Prospekt – Mozhaiskoe Highway. If the roads are clear, then you can get to the Moscow Ring Road in just 11 minutes. In the evening, such a trip will take more than an hour. Traffic jam statistics on the Moscow Ring Road by hour:
Occupancy decreases quite significantly from mid-July-August. Roads become 1.5 points clearer than in May. But in September, when everyone returns from vacation and goes to school, the roads become impassable again. Traffic jam statistics on September 1 show that traffic congestion increases by 1 point. The indicator grows within 2 weeks, reaching the previous level.
Other cities of the Russian Federation
Google has compiled a list of 10 Russian cities with the worst traffic jams. The rating was formed according to the principle of the ratio of speed on an open road to current indicators:
In Samara, traffic congestion is usually higher in the evening . Traffic statistics by day of the week puts Friday in first place. The roads are passable on Monday and Thursday. In Krasnoyarsk, Monday and Friday are considered difficult days of the week. On the first day of work, the morning rush hour is more difficult than on any other day. On weekends, mornings and evenings are completely uncrowded.
In Ufa, weekday traffic jams begin at 7 a.m., with the worst traffic jams occurring between 8:30 and 9:20. In the evening, traffic is more difficult. Yandex map traffic statistics show that at 17.00 traffic congestion begins to increase sharply. Reaching a maximum of 18:10–19:10.
What are the traffic jam statistics in St. Petersburg? Peak hours start at 8:00–10:00, evening hours start at 17:30–19:30. On Saturday the roads are cleared 2 times, and on Sunday 4 times. Summer in St. Petersburg morning time There are no congestions. But in the evening the workload remains the same. Traffic jam statistics in SBP by hour:
Traffic jam statistics in Yekaterinburg show that the longest traffic jams occur on Vostochnaya, Furmanov, Malysheva and Shchorsa streets. Wednesday is more calm. Traffic congestion decreases by 2–2.5 times on Saturday and Sunday.
Busy time in the morning is 7:30–9:30, in the evening – 17:00–19:30. These hours are also peak times Nizhny Novgorod and Novosibirsk. In the evening, traffic jams in Novosibirsk are statistically about one point higher . This situation persists throughout the year, regardless of time.
What should drivers do?
Everyone wants to avoid traffic jams and save their time. How do you know which streets are difficult to navigate? Can be used mobile version Yandex Roads applications. Thanks to the application, drivers have access to a general picture of the roads. How to view traffic statistics in Yandex? By turning on traffic information on the map, you will see 4 colored arrows:
- Red- There are traffic jams here.
- Yellow– You can drive through, the speed is lower than usual.
- Green- the road is clear.
- Brown- traffic is blocked.
How does the system work? Information comes to the analytical center of the Yandex system from various sources. This includes video cameras and service detectors installed on the main highways of cities. Information is updated every 4 minutes.
Drivers can see the condition of different streets. The Yandex Roads program allows you to find out traffic jam statistics on your route in advance. By selecting the day and hour, information about possible traffic jams will appear.
You can also find out about traffic jam statistics on the M4. Congestion is shown on the online map. The system shows the situation on the road in real time. Drivers can see what the current traffic jams are in Moscow or St. Petersburg and choose the optimal route.
