Moscow is the largest city in Russia, the capital of the Russian Federation. It is a city of federal significance, as well as the administrative center of the Central Federal District. Moscow is the most numerous city in Russia. The number of inhabitants is 12 and a half million people. It is also the largest financial, industrial and tourist center of the country.
The area of the capital is 2562 square meters. km, population density - 4883 people / sq. km. The city is divided into 12 administrative districts. In total, they include 125 districts, two urban districts and 19 settlements.
Geographic location of the city
Moscow is located in the center of the European territory of Russia and the East European Plain, between the Volga and Oka rivers. Approximately 1/3 of the city of Moscow is located within the Moscow Ring Highway (MKAD).
How the territory of Moscow grew
Moscow has been growing throughout its long history. All new settlements were involved in its composition,new areas emerged. The city grew very quickly from 1916 to 1935, when its area increased by almost 3 times, and the number of inhabitants increased by 1.8 million people. The fastest population growth rates were recorded from 1995 to 2012 - by 2.9 million people. However, the urban area during this period remained unchanged.
As the population grew, so did the number of cars. Already in 2010, motorization exceeded the level that was planned only by 2025. The annual growth in the number of personal cars is about 5%. Along with the growth in the number of cars, the road network is also developing, but this process is not able to compensate for the growing load. Therefore, traffic jams and congestion have become a real problem for the capital.
Another feature of the development and expansion of the metropolis is territorial differences. The busiest life is in full swing in the center, where there are a large number of offices. At the same time, they say that from the outside of the Moscow Ring Road, the quality of life of the population is already significantly declining. Thus, monocentrism is typical for Moscow. The situation could be reversed by the transition to a polycentric structure of the city, suggesting the emergence of several key centers in different parts of it.
Features of the expansion of Moscow's borders in 2011–2012
In 2011-2012, the city experienced the most extensive restructuring. It included vast territories of the Moscow region in the southwest, as well as some other areas. As a result, the total area of Moscow has increased by 2.4 times. The purpose of expanding the territory of the capital was to combatmonocentric agglomeration and improved zoning.
The Moscow expansion plan itself was called "New Moscow", but the government of the capital preferred to call it "Greater Moscow".
The population of the city took the idea of such an expansion ambiguously. About 40 percent were in favor, the same number were against, and another 18% had no clear opinion.
Significant growth in urban size has affected the position of Moscow in the ranking of world cities in terms of area. From the former 11th place, the capital has risen to the sixth in the list of the largest cities. At the same time, there was no large population growth, and Moscow retained its 7th place in terms of the number of inhabitants in the world. The total increase was 250 thousand people.
It was assumed that the expansion of Moscow's borders will lead to the creation of 1 million jobs, and 2 million people will receive new housing. The total amount of expenses for the formation of New Moscow amounted to 11 trillion rubles. The main part of this amount was spent on the construction of new facilities.
Public transport problem
The most difficult problem on the territory of New Moscow is the problem of public transport. To solve it, it is planned to conduct additional ground public transport routes, more actively use the railways of the Belarusian, Kyiv and Kursk directions of the Moscow Railways, and build new metro lines.
What was annexed to Moscow in 2012
The events of 2012 are considered the most important in the history of the capital. The new project for the expansion of Moscow differed sharply from the previous master plans. So, 148 thousand hectares of land belonging to the southwestern Moscow region were added to the city. Nothing of the kind was previously envisaged. In total, 21 municipalities were annexed, including 2 urban districts (Shcherbinka and Troitsk), as well as 19 urban and rural settlements that were previously located in the Leninsky, Podolsky, Naro-Fominsk districts of the region. In addition to them, part of the territories of the Krasnogorsk and Odintsovo districts fell into the city.
As a result of all these changes, 2 new urban districts were formed: Novomoskovsky and Troitsky. And the total population of the capital was 235 thousand people.
What did the expansion of the city give?
The accession of territories was associated with attempts to solve the difficult transport situation, the problem of overpopulation and Moscow's too strong orientation towards its center. In accordance with the new urban planning policy, the priority is now the fight against monocentricity and movement towards polycentricity. It is assumed that as a result, new centers of business activity and new jobs for city residents will be formed in Moscow. This will provide good opportunities for the stable development of the metropolitan economy for a long time to come.
What will happen to the territory of Moscow in 2019-2020
Prospects for the development of the city are largely related to the further expansion of New Moscow through the annexation of ever larger areas of the region. In the coming years, the borders of the city will go further and furtherfrom MKAD. It is assumed that the benefits of annexing the territories will be not only to Moscow itself, but also to those settlements that will be within the city boundaries. In such cities and villages, the transport situation will improve, the number of traffic jams will decrease, and modern infrastructure will appear. At the same time, the existing green spaces will be preserved, which will improve the ecological situation in the metropolis.
Why the expansion of the territory of Moscow is a necessary measure
One of the main reasons is the lack of land due to the growing population of the city. Another important motive is the constant growth of capital inflow, which is associated with sustainable economic and social development, and, as a result, the attractiveness of the capital for investment. It is no secret that Moscow is the most successful city in Russia. In particular, in the Moscow region the situation with the economy is much worse. There is a shortage of jobs, poor infrastructure development, and transport problems. It has become unprofitable for many companies to build high-rise buildings in the region.
Another reason is the desire of many Muscovites to live closer to the city outskirts, where the environment is better, more greenery and less dense buildings. They are ready to change their apartment in the city center for another, if only it was closer to the outskirts. At the same time, they want to remain Muscovites, and not become residents of the Moscow region, otherwise their material and financial situation will deteriorate sharply. It is also important for them that there are points nearby where you canget a job, and specifically for a job in the capital.
Despite the vast territory of the country, Moscow has very dense buildings. So, it is several times higher than in Paris, London and other capital cities of Europe. The population of the central part is sorely lacking living space.
There will be huge benefits for residents of the cities of the Moscow region who find themselves on the territory of the capital. They will not even have to move anywhere, they automatically become Muscovites. With all the pluses that follow from this circumstance.
The city authorities also have their own interest. The fact is that there are a large number of significant retail outlets outside the Moscow Ring Road from the side of the Moscow Region, with which large financial flows are associated. If these territories turn out to be within the boundaries of the city of Moscow, then all these revenues will go to the capital, and not to the region, as before the annexation.
Expansion Benefits
- Improvement of the ecological situation. The city will receive some unloading, new parks will be created. Control over waste disposal will be strengthened.
- Benefit for residents. Those who lived in the expansion zone of Moscow will receive all the advantages of the status of a resident of the capital.
- Unloading the transport system. A more even distribution of residents and the construction of new interchanges can improve the transport situation in the Russian capital.
Possible expansion cons
The disadvantages of expanding the city of Moscow are extremely insignificant. Basically, this is the loss of independence in the annexed territories, the complication in the distribution of the city budget. Forthe expansion of Moscow will mean a decrease in territory.
Conclusion
Thus, the expansion of Moscow is a long, but uneven in speed process, often due to the natural growth of the city's population. Many areas of the metropolitan area used to be part of the region. The most radical stage of expansion came in 2011-2012, when a huge part of the Moscow region southwest of the former borders of the capital became part of the urban area. No such expansion is foreseen in the coming years. But Moscow's borders will move farther and farther away from the Moscow Ring Road, as the city's population increases and the emergence of new microdistricts is associated with this. Along with the growth of the city, the transport network of the capital is also expanding.
