Skip to main content

New CIS highway connection planned

Plans are being set out for an important new highway link in the CIS. This new link will connect the M-5 and M-7 highways, close to the city of Ufa and the project is expected to cost US$1.12 billion to carry out. The work will require the construction of a tunnel stretch carrying four traffic lanes, as well as two highway sections and an overpass in the city itself. Ufa is the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan, which is part of the CIS. The city is linked to Russia’s capital Moscow by the M-7 highwa
August 19, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Plans are being set out for an important new highway link in the CIS. This new link will connect the M-5 and M-7 highways, close to the city of Ufa and the project is expected to cost US$1.12 billion to carry out. The work will require the construction of a tunnel stretch carrying four traffic lanes, as well as two highway sections and an overpass in the city itself. Ufa is the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan, which is part of the CIS. The city is linked to Russia’s capital Moscow by the M-7 highway and to neighbouring Kazakhstan (and its capital Astana) by the M-5 highway. The route is an important one for Russia and its Asian neighbours and carries heavy truck traffic vital to trade.

The final route of the new link has yet to be announced but it will likely include a crossing of the Belaya River. Construction of the new highway section may involve major technical challenges. The area immediately to the south of the city has seen numerous diversions of the course of the river over the centuries, presenting difficult geological conditions for highway and bridge construction. However once the new link is complete, it will speed transport between the M-7 and M-5 highways and will also reduce congestion in Ufa, as through traffic currently has to negotiate the centre of the city.

Related Content

  • Approval for Moscow’s ring road reconstruction
    October 15, 2015
    Moscow’s ring road is due for rebuilding – Eugene Gerden writes. The Moscow city authorities have finalised the project of the reconstruction of the Moscow Ring Road. The ring road encircles the City of Moscow and the plan was announced by Marat Khusnullin, deputy mayor of the city. Khusnullin said that, to date, the Moscow city government has completed 90% of the design documentation of the project.
  • Poland's ambitious highway construction plans
    July 10, 2012
    The European football championships are among a number of things pushing Poland's ambitious highway building programme. Patrick Smith reports. Poland is planning to spend a colossal €4.57 billion on road projects in 2009, a 35% increase over the previous year. T
  • China looks to the future with major highway plans
    February 15, 2012
    China is still moving ahead with plans that will give it the world's biggest highway system. Patrick Smith reports. As China's economy grows even more, keeping the country on the move has become a priority for the government. While the country has made great strides over the past decade in improving its infrastructure, the number of vehicles has also increased rapidly, and in some instances restrictions have been placed on them.
  • Czech bridge facing demolition over condition concerns
    October 29, 2018
    A bridge located in Prague, capital of the Czech Republic, is facing calls for its demolition. Concern has been expressed over the condition of the Hlavka Bridge, which spans the Vltava River. The bridge carries heavy vehicle traffic as well as trams and is one of the city’s major transport arteries. It was built originally from 1909 to 1912, replacing an earlier wooden structure. It was then rebuilt so as to cope with vehicle traffic and at present carries up to 100,000 vehicles/day, making it one of the b