Two new diameters and 14 suburban stations: MCD changes in 2023

2023 will be one of the most productive and promising years for the Moscow Central Diameters (MCD). That was announced by Maxim Liksutov, Deputy Moscow Mayor for Transport. The city and JSC Russian Railways will launch traffic on D3 and D4, complete the reconstruction and construction of 14 suburban stations and complete the reverse traffic means on D1 between Savyolovskaya and Belorusskaya metro stations.

“Sergei Sobyanin together with the Director General of RZhD Oleg Belozyorov signed the infrastructure commission plan for this year: 14 new and reconstructed suburban railway stations are to be opened. The main event is the launch of D3 and D4 in August-September 2023. Passengers will be able to use entirely new routes, pay for trips on two more transport arteries using the integrated ticket system of Moscow transport, and enjoy comfort,” says Maxim Liksutov, Deputy Moscow Mayor for Transport.

According to him, over five million Moscow and Moscow region residents will have access to modern and comfortable urban transport. It will accelerate area development and improve people’s life.

D3 and D4

The launch of D3 and D4 can be rightfully called the major event of 2023 for the capital’s railway system.

The 85-kilometer-long D3 will link Saint Petersburg and Kazan lines. This new line of surface metro will have 41 stations, with 14 of them being transfer points. Passengers will have 21 transfer options to the metro, other diameters, and the Moscow Central Circle (MCC). D3 will improve the transport situation in 24 districts of Moscow and four towns in the Moscow region. According to experts, over 577,000 people will be using it every day.

D4 will be the longest railway line (86 kilometers). The diameter will link seven Moscow railway stations: Belorussky, Savyolovsky, Rizhsky, Leningradsky, Kazansky, Yaroslavsky, and Kursky. D4 will have a record-breaking number of transfer stations (18) with 35 options to transfer to the metro, MCC, and other diameters. Preliminary calculations suggest that about 30 million people per year will be using D4 to travel inside Moscow.

“The launch of the D4 means a completely new railway line in the capital. We will also open Poklonnaya, Kutuzovskaya, and Testovskaya transport and transfer hubs comfortable for Moscow and Moscow region residents. Those hubs were built in compliance with Moscow transport standards: with roofs over the whole platform, multi-level passages across railway tracks, ticket offices, elevators, escalators, and turnstiles, “Maxim Liksutov adds.

Poklonnaya station will have a transfer to two metro lines, Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya and Solntsevskaya. There will be a passage from Kutuzovskaya station to the Moscow Central Circle and Filyovskaya line. Testovskaya station will link two diameters (D1 and D4), the Moscow Central Circle, the Big Circle Line, as well as the Filyovskaya and Solntsevskaya metro lines.

Improvement of existing lines

Works on the existing lines, D1 and D2, will continue in 2023. Reconstruction of several stations will be completed there.

This will ensure convenient transfer from renovated Timiryazevskaya station to the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya metro line; currently, passengers are using temporary wooden platforms and a bridge. A new transport and transfer hub will open at Lianozovo station linking together not only D1 and surface transport but also Lianozovo station (currently under construction) of the Lyublinsko-Dmitrovskaya metro line.

Platforms at Belorusskaya station in the boarding and disembarking zone of D1 and future D4 are being renewed. Moreover, additional main tracks for trains and a new tunnel for pedestrians are being built.

Petrovsko-Razumovskaya station of D1 will also be opened after reconstruction. In 2023, the first stage of constructing a large hub will be completed here. It will connect D1, D3, stations of the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya and Lyublinsko-Dmitrovskaya lines of the same name, as well as surface transport routes. By 2025, over 87,000 people will use the new stations every day.

New Maryina Roshcha station of D2 will feature a transport and transfer hub. In the future, it will connect D2, D4, and metro stations of the Lyublinsko-Dmitrovskaya and Big Circle lines.

The reconstruction of Kursky railway station, a stop of D2 and D4 trains, will also be completed. Passengers will enjoy convenient infrastructure: the underground lobby has already been renewed, and three new platforms have been opened.

What is more, one of the largest Moscow hubs, Three Stations Square, will be completed. It will link D2, D4, Komsomolskaya stations of the Sokolnicheskaya and Koltsevaya metro lines, as well as Leningradsky, Kazansky, and Yaroslavsky railway stations.