By 2025, Moscow plans to triple the number of the above-ground metro connections
The Moscow Central Diameters (MCD) is one of the largestMoscow transport project of the above-ground metro creation in the world. It is one of the main projects of the new transport framework of the capital. By 2025, with the launch of all five diameters, the MCD will have 67 hubs.
In Moscow through routes appeared thanks to the first MCD. Diameters connect remote areas of Moscow, passing through the center of the capital. In turn, passengers choose the right diameter and reach the final destination or the city center. If this is not the final destination, passengers can interchange to another mode of transport that they need. By 2025, with the launch of all five diameters, the number of such interchange stations will increase to 67 hubs with interchanges between the MCD, the Moscow Central Circle (MCC) and the metro. The leader of the interchanges will be MCD 4, there will be 18 of them.
All hubs will be built according to the uniform Moscow transport standard. For example, Schukinskaya MCD 2 station,which was launched this summer, includes the MCD station, the metro station, the interchange between them is carried out on a crossing built on a «dry feet» principle. Passengers can also make an interchange to the buses and trams.
With the MCD launch, payment for the trips has become easier. Passengers used to buy a separate ticket, but now there is a single payment system for all modes of public transport – the «Troika» card. Interchanges between the metro, the MCC and the MCD are free of charge for 90 minutes. Payment is made by bank cards (Visa, Master Card, MIR, Union Pay) or devices equipped with NFC (Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, Google Pay, Mir Pay and others). Moreover, the Moscow payment system got the Transport Ticketing Global international award - "The Best Smart Ticket System - 2020".
«By increasing the number of convenient interchanges, passengers get freedom in transportation. They are able to build multimodal routes, so that they can be sure that they will reach any point of the city by the public transport. On behalf of the Moscow Mayor, we are continuing to create a seamless transport space with a single payment system and common service standards. Today, MCD 1 and MCD 2 have only 21 interchange stations, but in a few years this number will increase by 27. By 2025, all five Moscow Central Diameters will have 67 interchange stations, including more than 20 interchanges to the MCC and the Big Circle Line – the two transport hearts of the capital», – noted Maksim Liksutov, the Deputy Mayor of Moscow for Transport.
The MCD is an above-ground metro which is considered an analogue of the Crossrail in London and the RER in Paris. It allows passengers to travel from the suburbs to the city center and back. Passengers can interchange to the metro, the MCC and the surface transport. The MCD consists of 60 stations with 21 interchanges. The launch of the future MCD 3 is planned in 2023. The new Moscow Central Diameter will include 43 stations and its length will be 82 km. The MCD 4 is scheduled to be launched in 2023. There will be 18 transit stations with 35 options for interchanges to the metro, the Moscow Central Circle and other diameters. With the MCD 4, passengers will be able to reach 7 Moscow terminals without interchanges. The MCD 5 launch is planned on the 2025.
