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Author Topic: Getting around Moscow  (Read 124092 times)

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Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Touring Moscow Transportation and Parks
« Reply #75 on: September 04, 2010, 12:05:40 AM »
We'll transfer to the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line. Let's go.









Some stations have multiple levels serving multiple lines. Do you remember some of the ways to distinguish the difference between Koltseveya Kievskaya and Kiyevskaya Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya? As pointed out in the previous post, the Kiyevskaya Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya mosiacs are placed much higher on the walls. The walls are also lighter, more whitewashed, as contrasted to the Koltseveya Kievskaya.





As the doors close the announcer says that familiar phrase, Осторожно, двери закрываются! meaning "Caution, the sliding doors are closing" and we're headed off to our destination station, Park Pobedy.

(Listen here: http://mic-ro.com/metro/files/msk2-1.wav)

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Touring Moscow Transportation and Parks
« Reply #76 on: September 04, 2010, 01:36:50 AM »
The longest stretch between Metro stations is this segment. It is 4 km between Kievskaya and Park Pobedy and at an average cruising speed of 41.3 km/h, it will take around 4-5 minutes to reach our stop.





Park Pobedy is one of the newer stations and at 84 metres down, is second deepest in the world, after Kiev Metro's Arsenalna, and it takes from 5 to 8 minutes from street to underground platform (depending on number of riders) and at least a 3 minute ride on the the escalator itself.





Park Pobedy means 'Victory Park' in english, named for the large park across the street which celebrates Russian victory in the Great Patriotic War. The station Park Pobedy (Парк Победы) is on the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line of the Moscow Metro. It also contains the longest escalators in Europe, each one is 126 metres long and has 740 steps.

The ride to the surface takes at least three minutes in non-rush hours and much longer during rush hours. Here is a video that takes you on the ride, all 3 minutes and 11 seconds in non-rush hours:




Park Pobedy is a cross-platform complex with two separate, parallel platforms, though only the inner pair of tracks is presently used. The second set of tracks will be used by the Solntsevskaya Line when that is completed.





The station is adorned with two large enameled panels by Zurab Tsereteli depicting the Great Patriotic War (pictured above at the end of the inbound platform) and Patriotic War of 1812 (as shown below on the outbound platform).





After two decades of unattractive and at best bland station designs, Russian engineers have again been given creative freedom to fashion stations that are both efficient and beautiful.

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Touring Moscow Transportation and Parks
« Reply #77 on: September 04, 2010, 01:52:20 AM »



Looks like there is rain today as we come up to street level from the underground. Now you can tour "Victory Park" at this link on RUA: http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=11060.0





Victory Park is a "must see" when in Moscow--it's that important and to do it justice you should plan on at least 4-8 hours. http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php?topic=11060.0


Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Touring Moscow Transportation and Parks
« Reply #78 on: September 04, 2010, 02:01:45 AM »
To find out how to arrive at Victory Park, follow the trip on the RUA tour of the Moscow Metro: http://ruadventures.com/forum/index.php/topic,9049.msg176231.html#msg176231

Offline WestCoast

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Re: Touring Moscow Transportation and Parks
« Reply #79 on: September 07, 2010, 01:57:16 AM »
Mendy this is a link to a large number of very interesting colour photos from the early 20th century FSU perhaps you could find some use for them in the various sections on RUA.


http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/08/russia_in_color_a_century_ago.html
andrewfi says ''Proximity is almost no guarantee of authority" and "in many cases, distance gives a better picture with less emotional and subjective input."

That means I'm a subject matter expert on all things Russia, Ukraine and UK.

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Touring Moscow Transportation and Parks
« Reply #80 on: September 09, 2010, 02:29:15 PM »
WC, thanks!

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Touring Moscow: Transportation and Parks
« Reply #81 on: November 26, 2011, 08:57:02 PM »
As reported in the Sunday morning edition of the Mendeleyev Journal.

Over the past several years Moscow buses, trolleys and trams erected metal turnstiles, forcing passengers to enter only at the front of the wagon. Revenues went up as hopping in the back of the bus or tram without a ticket became a thing of the past.



(photo: autonews.ru)


This past July however Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced during a transportation tour that the turnstiles would be removed, citing an official transit study which revealed that the turnstiles were causing more traffic gridlock by adding an average of 15 minutes to each route.

So it was no big surprise when Mayor Sobyanin this past Friday told Radio Echo Moscow that crews had begun the work of dismantling the metal ticket turnstiles on every Moscow bus, tram and trolley. The mayor said that limiting entry solely through the first door and the time to pass through the turnstiles had reduced the speed of buses and trolleybuses to the point that the system was too slow for transit efficiency.

When asked how buses and trolleys will maintain rider ticket control, the mayor said that drivers and additional supervisors will be responsible. (In decades past many Moscow buses were on an "honour system" with random ticket inspections by ticket control officers and cashiers.)

Sobyanin also said that Moscow would return to a "one ticket" concept where a single ticket would qualify for any mode of public transport: bus, trolley-bus, tram and metro, with the tickets available for purchase at kiosks and markets as well as Metro station cashiers. This is also a return to an earlier practice and may well give an added boost to small kiosk and market vendors.

City officials say it could take up to two years to remove the turnstiles from Europe's largest transit system.



(photo: Samsdam.com.ua)


But at the same time that Moscow is taking down the turnstiles, the capital of Ukraine is putting them up. Citing efforts to rein in lost ticket revenue and control ridership, the city of Kiev (Kiev) began to add turnstiles this past June and the Kievrada (Kiev city government) has budgeted ten million hryvnia for the project.

Perhaps Kiev should call Moscow. We suspect that there will be some used turnstiles in good condition on the market very soon.
                                                             

Offline mendeleyev

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Getting around Moscow
« Reply #82 on: December 26, 2012, 04:06:59 PM »
www.MendeleyevJournal.com

Sometimes you can learn some of the most interesting things from readers. Thanks to Mendeleyev Journal subscriber Raisa Tarasova, herself an interesting blogger, for alerting readers to the fact that cannabis was woven into the fabric of the famous Fountain of International Friendship at the All Russia Exhibition Centre (VDNKh) in Moscow.

First built in the 1930s and later reborn in the 1950s, the park encompasses an exhibition area over 2,375,000 square metres to various agriculture, science, industry, cultural and historical exhibitions. You can imagine our surprise when Ms. Tarasova pointed out that cannabis is part of the large and popular Fountain of Friendship exhibit. Since the park's original purpose was to promote Russian agriculture it makes perfect sense.

Take a look for yourself.

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(photo: Alex Zeneko)

Take a closer look as there it is between sheaves of wheat and grain:


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(photo: Natalia Gerasimova)

Raisa says that, "Historically, in Russia cannabis was one of the most cultivated cereal grains, its fiber was used for hemp and textile manufacturing; status of cannabis was as high as of wheat and sunflower. In fact, you can see cannabis leaves right between wheat sheaves on the fountain of the International Friendship in Moscow."

Thanks to Ms. Tarasova our next visit to the All-Russia Exhibit will be even more insightful in understanding the fountain's history.

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Getting around Moscow
« Reply #83 on: January 31, 2014, 02:44:01 AM »
Each year the birthday of the Moscow Metro is celebrated on the 15th of May. From this last spring...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/Wt3QR62eeMM" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/Wt3QR62eeMM</a>




Offline MrMann

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Re: Getting around Moscow
« Reply #84 on: January 31, 2014, 03:09:06 AM »
What happened about the turnstiles being removed? Both buses and trams had them when we were there earlier this month.

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Getting around Moscow
« Reply #85 on: January 31, 2014, 03:37:27 PM »
Quote
What happened about the turnstiles being removed? Both buses and trams had them when we were there earlier this month.

Mayor Sobyanin learned an important lesson in economic 101: a little gridlock is nothing compared to the drop in revenue that resulted from uncollected fares.

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: Getting around Moscow
« Reply #86 on: March 21, 2014, 11:47:48 PM »
There are a few things that are still difficult to do when tooling around the Moscow Metro:

- Find a free toilet.

- Free drinking water.

As we wrote in Destinations magazine, the city of Moscow plans to eliminate at least one of those obstacles and before long you'll be able to take a sip of water (filtered) while in the Metro. Previously it was necessary to purchase a bottle of water at one of the kiosks when thirsty.

Likely some readers recall the old style Soviet carbonated water dispensers that can still be found in a few places around Moscow and other cities.




Moscow Municipal Programs says that they've begun with free water machines already installed at theses stations: Savelovskaya, Dmitrovskaya, Timiryazevskaya, Petrovsko-Razumovskaya, Sokol and Prospect Mira.


(foto: Moscow Municipal Programs)

In the near future, machines will be installed at stations: Tekstilschiki, Kuzminki, Ryazanskiy Prospect, Belyaevo, Airport.

The project calls for 17 machines at the beginning and depending on public reaction the idea of free drinking water in the Metro could be expanded to more stations.

Of course our Western readers will want to know if the water will be cold, especially in summer? Sorry, Metro officials had planned on these machines being coolers but the health department, concerned about effects of cold water on health (we're not kidding) has overruled the idea and dictated that the water delivered be filtered but not cooled.



 

 

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