Moscow Ring Road Research Articles

Solid runoff assessment of Moscow territory

Over half of the existing river valleys and gullies on the territory of Moscow (within the Moscow Ring Road) for the XVIII–XX centuries were buried because of land development. Along with this, a network of storm-water drains (underground pipes) was built with an average density of 6.9 km/km2. Now the impermeable surfaces (roofs of buildings, sidewalks, roads etc.) cover 50% of total Moscow territory. Surface runoff, including soil, suspended and dissolve loads now enters remaining streams and ponds through storm-water network. It has been estimated, that on average the annual solid runoff from the surface area of 880 km2 is about 160–250 m3/km2 (or 2.6–4 ton/ha per year). About 100 m3/km2 of sediment per year is being washed off from flat surfaces (e.g. fluvial terraces) with amplitudes of less than 6–7 m. The reason of increase sedimentation and dissolved substances in runoff is a poor maintained storm-water network, extensive urban development, and intensification of aeolian transit from construction sites. The total quantity of particulate matter (suspended or bedload) coming from the storm-water drains lead to an explosive increase in sediment runoff exceeding the transporting capacity of the preserved rivers. The potential of the Moskva River to remove the increased runoff of sediments and pollutants has now been completely exhausted.

Corporative strategies of spatial warehousing development of retailers in Moscow agglomeration

The rapid growth of the transport and logistics complex of urban agglomerations forces large companies to change spatial strategies for warehouse networks development based on current trends. Thus, there is a transformation of factors for the placement of warehouse facilities. This article examines the general and specific features of the spatial development of warehouse networks of the largest retailers and online-operators in the post-soviet period using the example of the Moscow agglomeration. The novelty of the work consists both in the comparative analysis and typologization of strategies for warehouse networks development, and in the study of shifts in their territorial development. The information base of the study was the author's database of corporations’ warehouse facilities, collected on the basis of open sources. Two multidirectional trends have been identified. The first is the shift of new construction to the periphery of the Moscow agglomeration, to the zone of influence of the Central Ring Road (CRR), and an increase in the average area of warehouse facilities. The second is the development of a network of small warehouse facilities (sorting centers, darkstores) in the core of the agglomeration, near or inside the Moscow Ring Road (MKAD). Territorial shifts have been identified in the placement of new warehouse facilities for both online-operators and retailers. Online retailers have moved from a strategy of placing warehouses near airports to placing a large warehouse in every sector of the Moscow agglomeration. For retailers, the determining factor of location remains proximity to motorways (formerly main highways, now the intersections of the main highway and the Central Ring Road/A–107 or A–108) with the possibility of expanding the service area to all regions of the Central Federal District. Based on the results obtained, a typology of strategies for the spatial development of warehouse networks of the largest retailers in the region is proposed. The analysis provides an idea of current trends in spatial strategies for the development of corporate warehouse networks in the Moscow agglomeration, which can be used in forecasting and territorial planning for other large-scale urban agglomerations, based on the concept of diffusion of innovations.

Parameters for Induction Curves of Prompt and Delayed Fluorescence and Redox State of PSI–P700 for Birch and Linden Leaves in Various Urban Environments

The photosynthetic characteristics of linden leaves (Tilia cordata L.) and birches (Betula verrukosa L.) growing near the city highways of Moscow (MKAD, Moscow Ring Road) by simultaneously recording the induction curves of chlorophyll fluorescence and the redox state of the PSI pigment–P700. In trees near highways, deterioration of electron transport at the level of plastoquinones (δRo) and decrease of P700+ reduction was revealed, despite the rather high rates of photosynthetic efficiency (FV/FM). In birch leaves growing along the Moscow Ring Road, a decrease in the outflow of electrons from PSI and a decrease in the intensity of delayed fluorescence at 30 ms and 1 s, associated with a decrease in the electrical and chemical components of the electrochemical proton gradient on photosynthetic membranes, were revealed. In plants near highways, an increase in the degree of photoinhibition and a slowdown in the reactions of restoring photosynthetic activity in the dark after the cessation of photooxidative stress were noted, which confirms the probable effect of unfavorable urban conditions on the biosynthesis of proteins in PSII reaction centers. The following fluorescence parameters are proposed as indicators of the state of trees in an urban environment: total performance index (PItotal) and the quantum yield of reduction of electron acceptors on the acceptor side of PSI (φRo).

Динамика радиальных приростов лиственницы европейской (Larix decidua Mill.) в условиях антропогенной нагрузки

The results of a dendrochronological analysis of the European larch (Larix decidua Mill.) forest plantations growth in the zone of influence of motor transport pollution in the territory near the Moscow Ring Road at a distance of 8 and 18 m from the roadbed and in a recreational plantation in the third stage of digression are presented. The influence of these factors at the age of European larch from 5 to 65 years was revealed. It has been established that in plantations near the Moscow Ring Road, the annual radial growth of European larch wood is on average 45 %, in a plantation with a recreational load it makes up 62 % of the increase in the control plot, remote from highways and settlements. Differences in annual increments are statistically significant throughout the entire observation period. The average long-term growth of wood at a distance of 8 m from the Moscow Ring Road is 34 % lower than at a distance of 18 m. With an increase in the distance from the roadbed by 1 m, the annual growth of wood increases by 0,2 mm. In forest plantations of European larch, growths of early wood predominate: in areas near the Moscow Ring Road — an average of 68 % of the annual growth, in a plantation with a recreational load — 63 %, in the control plot — only 49 %.

The Geographical Patterns of the Warehouse Property Market in the Moscow Urban Agglomeration

This article analyzes the current state and development trends of the warehouse property market in Moscow and Moscow oblast, the geography of large warehouse facilities, and the density of their distribution within the Moscow urban agglomeration. It is found that the most popular logistics directions are the northwest (Zelenograd and Radumlya), south (Domodedovo and Belye Stolby) and east (Balashikha and Noginsk) with the largest freight traffic flows and free areas for construction, as well as the Central Ring Road (Belyi Rast, Sever-4) due to the increased speed and time of freight delivery. High demand for warehouse property is also observed for the southwest (Vorsino) and northeast (Sofrino and Pushkino) sectors. In the west (Istra) and north (Dmitrov) directions, new warehousing facilities appear mostly between the Moscow Ring Road and the Central Ring Road due to relatively low transit cargo flows in these directions and the prevalence of water and forested land in the land use structure. The logistical influence of the Moscow urban agglomeration extends beyond the borders of Moscow oblast in the southwestern (Obninsk), northeastern (Pereslavl-Zalessky), and western (Gagarin) directions. These conclusions are based on statistical information and mathematical calculations.

On One Approach to Statistical Modeling of Traffic Flow on the Moscow Ring Road and Entrance Control

On One Approach to Statistical Modeling of Traffic Flow on the Moscow Ring Road and Entrance Control

TRANSFORMATION OF FLOODPLAIN LANDSCAPES UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF NATURAL AND ANTHROPOGENIC CHANGES IN THE ENVIRONMENT (ON THE EXAMPLE OF THE ZAKHARKOVO FLOODPLAIN OF THE MOSCOW RIVER)

The Zakharkovskaya floodplain of the Moscow River is located directly above the Moscow Ring Road. It is an example of a natural structure that is spontaneously restored after long-term economic use (hayfields, pastures, long-term plowing, summer cottege settlements, drainage and irrigation channels, silt sites, etc.) under conditions of cessation of intensive anthropogenic impact. The article deals with the history of the formation and development of the Zakharkovskaya floodplain in prehistoric times (late Holocene), in the early historical period (beginning-middle of the second millennium AD), and in the late historical period-XIX-XXI centuries. The regulation of water flow, which has occurred in recent decades, is accompanied by a relative stabilization of the Moscow riverbed, turning it into a canal, reducing the intensity of channel deformations, leveling the bottom relief with its general deepening. As in other floodplain plots, the territory of floodplain leaves the flood zone; depressions are filled in, lakes are degraded, and man-made terrain is formed. At the same time, the current restrictions on access to the territory of the Zakharkovskaya floodplain for 10-15 years have created conditions for the restoration of natural structures, in particular, forest and shrub tracts, and increased the landscape and ecological attractiveness of floodplain lands.

The accessibility of the center of Moscow as a factor of location of housing construction in the Moscow agglomeration

The aim of the study is to identify patterns of localization of housing construction and structural changes in the Moscow agglomeration under the influence of transport accessibility from new housing. The research method is based on the monitoring of multistory housing projects. The transport accessibility was analyzed with the help of Google Maps service, which allows to determine the travel time by car and public transport from housing projects to the center of Moscow. The key factor determining the location of housing projects is a compromise between the transport accessibility of the Moscow labor market, which is largely concentrated in the center of the capital, and the cost of housing. The urge to minimize the travel time causes structural changes in different zones of agglomeration. The reorganization of the former industrial ring along the Third Ring Road is stimulated by the good transport accessibility of the city center. Travel time by car does not exceed 0.5 hours for 77% of residents of new buildings in this zone. In the 10 km zone outside the Moscow Ring Road, the travel time to the center by car does not exceed 1 hour for 94% of the residents of new buildings. The combination of acceptable travel time to the center of the capital and inexpensive housing costs leads to the development of inter-highway intervals. Travel time to the center by public transport does not exceed 1.5 hours for 38% of residents at a distance of 10-30 km from the Moscow Ring Road. The need to ensure for residents the accessibility of the center leads to the strengthening of the axes of settlements along the main transport corridors. On the periphery of the agglomeration, the increase in travel time (more than 2 hours) leads to the orientation of residents mainly to the local labor markets.

Features of ecological formation and development of the forest park “Medvedkovsky”

The forest park landscape is a cultural “anthropogenic landscape”, which assumes optimal and rational use of natural resources in order to create favorable conditions for mass recreation in the natural forest environment. The impact of recreation on the forest park areas, as well as on the territory of all protected areas, has a number of regularities. In cases where the number of visitors significantly above the acceptable level, and resistance is relatively low, the anthropogenic impact is not only visible, but can be damaging to the individual components of the environment, and sometimes to the whole complex in general. Such an impact causes a response from the natural environment. The analysis of the state of the Medvedkovsky forest park was carried out to recognize the main determinants of the negative repercussions on this territory. For this purpose, the flora and fauna, the road and path network, the degree of recreational digression of the territory, as well as the noise impact exerted on it due to its proximity to the MKAD (Moscow ring road) were taken in account.

ВЛИЯНИЕ АВТОТРАНСПОРТНОГО ЗАГРЯЗНЕНИЯ НА РОСТ ЛЕСНЫХ КУЛЬТУР ЛИСТВЕННИЦЫ ЕВРОПЕЙСКОЙ

The results of an 18-year monitoring of the growth of European larch (Larixdecidua Mill.) in the zone of influence of the Moscow Ring Road (MKAD), one of the largest highways in the European part of Russia with a load of about 9 thousand cars per hour, are presented. The studies have been carried out on three trial plots located at 15, 35 and 100 m (control) from the highway. The morphometric parameters of European larch were determined 4, 8 and 18 years after planting four-year-old seedlings. Significant inhibition of European larch growth near the MKAD was revealed by height, trunk diameter, and crown parameters. The largest negative impact of the MKAD on its growth was manifested in the first 4 years after the creation of forest crops. The area of influence of the motorway on larch stands is about 40 m. Dendrochronological analysis of larch wood has showed that the total annual growth in the control section is significantly higher than in the area near the highway. Moreover, the growth of early wood in the area near the Moscow Ring Road is on average 23% higher than in the control one, the growth of late wood in the control area exceeds the growth in the area near the Moscow Ring Road by 34%. An analysis of the radial increment of European larch wood has showed that the growth of early wood is most closely related to the total amount of rainfall in May, June and July (correlation coefficient r = 0.33), of late wood to the amount of heat in August and September (r = - 0.44)

Methodological Approaches to the Delimitation of the Boundaries of the Moscow Agglomeration Based on Data from Mobile Network Operators

The article highlights the boundaries of the Moscow agglomeration and analyzes its spatial structure using approaches involving the concept of time geography. The study is based on a methodology for determining functional urban areas of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); mobile operators data on the localization of network users are applied. The analysis showed the impossibility of using the OECD methodology without adaptation to Russian conditions. This is because, according to this methodology, the entire territory of a “real city,” including the “bedroom districts” of Moscow and its satellite towns, lies in the core zone. Meanwhile, the suburban zone extends to the territory of almost all of Moscow oblast, in many directions beyond its borders. The proposed adapted variant of the delimitation methodology involves a reduction in the size of the core to the borders of the Moscow Ring Road (MKAD) with a corresponding decrease in the boundaries of the suburban zone. This is consistent with the approaches and ideas prevailing in Russian practice. Using the methodology of the spatiotemporal approach (concept of time geography), a “pulsating agglomeration” model was developed. This model is a way of studying and analyzing the dynamics of socioeconomic functioning of agglomerations, taking into account the different socioeconomic rhythms of the agglomeration. As part of the agglomeration, “static” (constant throughout the year) and “mobile” (seasonal) parts of the suburban area were distinguished. This allowed us to include in the analysis of “pulsation” not only the population of the structural elements of the agglomeration, but also its borders, depending on the seasons of the year.

Enrichment of road dust particles and adjacent environments with metals and metalloids in eastern Moscow

Road dust is one of the most informative indicators of the ecological state of urban environments, as vehicles have become the major source of pollution in many cities. Road dust consists of blown out soil particles, solid particles discharged from vehicles and abrasion of the road surface. Vehicle emissions contain many heavy metals and metalloids (HMMs) in environmentally hazardous concentrations, and roadside soils can accumulate technogenic fallout from the atmosphere over many years. In Moscow, detailed studies of the chemical composition of road dust have been not performed yet, wherefore, the aim of our work was to identify the levels of HMMs accumulation in particles of road dust on roads with various traffic intensities and to analyze their dependence on the composition of roadside soils and atmospheric fallout in the winter. The contents of Ag, As, Be, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Sn, Sr, Ti, V, W, Zn and La in road dust and in individual particle-size fractions (PM1, PM1–10, РМ10–50, РМ>50), as well as in urban soils and in dust component of snow (atmospheric precipitation), were determined by ICP-MS and ICP-AES methods. Road dust as a whole and its fractions are enriched with technogenic Ag, Cd, Sb, Zn, Sn, Cu, Pb, W, Bi, and Mo; other elements come mainly from natural and mixed sources, both natural and technogenic. The total enrichment with HMMs is maximal in PM1 fraction and decreases with increasing particle size. With an increase in the traffic intensity, the content of the majority of HMMs increases in the PM>50 fraction; decreases in the PM10–50 and PM1–10 fractions, and virtually does not change in the PM1 fraction. On small roads, the most environmentally hazardous particles PM1 and PM1–10 concentrate up to 93% of Ag; 51–60% of Cd, Bi, As, Sb, and Sn; 31–50% of Cr, Mo, Pb, Ni, Zn, Co, and Cu; and 15–30% of W, V, Fe, Mn, Be, Ti, and Sr. On larger roads, the proportion of all elements associated with PM1 and PM1–10 fractions decreases: on the Moscow Ring Road, they account for 78% of Ag; 31–35% of Cd and Sb; 16–30% of Bi, As, Sn, Mo, Pb, Ni, Zn, Co, and Cu; 6–15% of W, Cr, V, Fe, Mn, and Be; and 2–5% of Ti and Sr. The geochemical feature of eastern Moscow is the formation of the Sb–Ag–Sn–W paragenesis common to road dust, soils, and solids in the snow and derived from motor vehicle emissions. As and Mo enter road dust and soil during winter season mainly with snow from the atmosphere. Bi, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn enter road dust mainly with soil particles blown out from polluted roadside soils during summer season.

Spatial pattern of housing construction in Moscow agglomeration: radial and sectoral differentiation

The task of this work is to reveal the forms of spatial transformation of the Moscow metropolitan area due to the sectoral and radial differentiation of housing construction. The research is based on the monitoring of all multi-story housing projects under construction and development. These projects are classified by size class, location relative to existing housing stock, housing prices, and distance from highways. The localization of housing projects relative to the main highways changes non-linearly as the distance from the Moscow Ring Road increases. The core of the Moscow metropolitan area is relatively evenly sprawling in the 10-km zone outside the Moscow Ring Road. The nearest suburban zone of Moscow Oblast is being developed not only along key highways, but a significant part of housing projects is implemented in inter-highway intervals. As the distance from the Moscow Ring Road exceeds 10 km, the urban sprawl is replaced by the strengthening of the axes of the settlement pattern along main transport corridors (highways and railways), and the distance of projects from the highways decreases. This trend is particularly evident in the northeastern, eastern and southeastern segments of the suburban zone. In the peripheral zone of the Moscow metropolitan area, projects are concentrated mainly on the outskirts of existing towns, and the distance from highways increases in comparison with the suburban zone.

Current Trends in Moscow Settlement Pattern Development: A Multiscale Approach

The article studies current trends in Moscow population in context of socio- economic polarization strengthening between the capital city and other regions of the country. The study applies multiscale approach covering Moscow influence on Central Russia and other regions, interaction with the Moscow oblast and the level of internal population distribution within Moscow and particular settlements and villages in New Moscow territories. The gap in development is significantly noticeable for expanding Moscow and Moscow oblast against the background of depopulation in Central Russia regions and cities. Within the boundaries of Moscow the continuing model of extensive spatial growth of population has led to the most rapid growth of its periphery zone. Areas similar to bedroom communities in Old Moscow are forming in the municipalities of New Moscow located along the Moscow ring road (MKAD) and main radial highways, while large part of the new territories remain a typical countryside with villages and summer residents. Analysis of New Moscow suburban areas reveals the actual land use mosaics obscured by the official delimitation of Moscow and Moscow oblast and the formal division of population into urban and rural.

Рост культур лиственницы европейской в зоне влияния Московской кольцевой автодороги (МКАД)

Рост культур лиственницы европейской в зоне влияния Московской кольцевой автодороги (МКАД)

The Moscow Suburbs: Specifics and Spatial Development of Rural Areas

The specifics of and spatial trends in the development of rural areas in post-Soviet Moscow oblast, especially after the linear expansion of Moscow’s territory, are considered. A combination of centripetal and centrifugal vectors of population mobility is shown, representing oppositely directed migrations: on the one hand, people are attracted to permanent residence and labor migrants stream into the capital and its suburbs from other regions of Russia and CIS countries; on the other, there is the drain of Muscovites to their dachas. The diversity of the suburban territory is shown with various degrees of remoteness from the capital. Highrise housing development beyond the city limits is characteristic of oblast municipalities closest to the Moscow Ring Road; therefore, the development around the capital continues in all directions like an oil spot. Nevertheless, housing construction activity in the southern and southwestern municipalities near Moscow, adjacent to New Moscow, has been higher in recent years, resulting in numerous insular bedroom suburbs whose residents work in Moscow. With a high density of the rural population and dacha dwellers, the emergence of areas of high-rise housing development creates many problems. The active expansion of housing development has led to a sharp reduction in agricultural land. Meanwhile, Moscow oblast, witnessing a severe decay of agriculture in many regions of the Non-Chernozem Zone, remains a powerful food producer, supplying not only the capital and its suburbs but also other Russian regions. All this makes Moscow oblast Russia’s most successful region, as well as one of the most problematic.

ВЗАИМОСВЯЗЬ ЖИЛИЩНОГО СТРОИТЕЛЬСТВА В МОСКОВСКОЙ АГЛОМЕРАЦИИ И МИГРАЦИИ В СТОЛИЧНЫЙ РЕГИОН, "Известия Российской академии наук. Серия географическая"

Housing construction inMoscowagglomeration is a key mechanism stimulating migration inflow because it forms a downward pressure on housing prices, which are the most important barrier for migration. Positive feedback between extensive way of development of theMoscowagglomeration and migration inflow into the capital region stimulates hyperconcentration of the population and economic activity. Theoretical analysis shows that there is equilibrium between housing construction and migration inflow to theMoscowregion. According to our estimates, in the 2000-s the relation of migration inflow to housing construction volume (capability of theMoscowagglomeration to accumulate migration) has halved in comparison to the 1990s. Mathematical modeling and empirical data show that this shift was determined by the increase in natural rent distributed inRussiaand in agglomeration economies in other major cities of the country. Especially favorable for migration inflow is oil-spot-style extensive way of development of the agglomeration due to the dominance of largegreenfieldprojects of affordable housing in the 30-km zone outside the Moscow Ring Road in housing construction. It is shown that the development of this zone is a key regulator of the migration balance at the national level. Extensive way of development is subsidized by the government through multiple channels, primarily investments in transport infrastructure, what contradicts official goals of the regional policy and the government efforts to mitigate interregional inequality through the fiscal redistribution.

Geochemical Monitoring of Dust Fallout from the Highway Using a Portable X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometer

Dust fallout is one of the major sources of soil pollution in urban landscapes. The possibility of using portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometers for monitoring of dust loads from the highway is shown here. The composition of dust fallout from the Moscow Ring Road in 2011–2015 was estimated using a portable Thermo Niton XL3t analyzer. Based on the available data, the load dynamics of dust and toxic metals (Zn, Pb, Cu, Ni, Cr, V, and Mn) are traced over the last 15 years.

Geochemical monitoring of atmospheric dust fallout from the highway using a portable EDXRF

Dust fallout is one of the major sources of soil pollution in urban landscapes. In this study possibilities of portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometers in dust load monitoring from a highway were shown. The composition of atmospheric dust from the Moscow Ring Road in 2011-2015 years was estimated using Thermo Niton XL3t. Based on available data the variations of the dust and toxic metal loads (e.g. Zn, Pb, Cu, Ni, Cr, V and Mn) were traced over the last fifteen years.

A comprehensive analysis of the content of heavy rare-earth elements and platinum in snow samples to assess the ecological hazard of air pollution in urban areas

Snow samples from the territory of the Setun River Valley Wildlife Sanctuary are analyzed for the content of rare-earth elements, heavy metals, and other hazardous elements by the inductively coupled plasma mass-spectrometry method. The changes in the concentrations of rare-earth elements, Pt, Pd, and indicator ratios of elements in the solid fractions of snow are revealed. A trend toward a decrease in the content of several elements northeastward of the Moscow Ring Road (MRR) is established. The level of seasonal atmospheric contamination of the area under study is assessed, and a possible source is identified.