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Kerch Bridge

In Ukraine, as in a large country, there are many ways, but on the way the roads rise rivers and seas, and because in this field to build bridges.

One of these bridges (called a protracted people) Kerch is a bridge, which will link the Crimea with the Kuban. The idea of ​​building a bridge across the Kerch Strait expressed Albert Speer in early 1943 year.

Among the interesting facts, for example in the book “Warriors of railroads” there is mention of this bridge: “Construction of the bridge was started by Nazi troops, but was in its infancy. In addition to the bridge it was still necessary to build about 80 km railway, suitable to the bridge. Main construction started after the Crimean operation. Railway troops and special units NKPS did a great job. The bridge across the Kerch Strait was built 3 November 1944 until it was discovered rail traffic.

Hitler had no doubt of success and would like to transfer to the Kuban troops and equipment to march on India. Germans began to bring their Kerch metal structures, cement and other building materials. Soviet aircraft noticed unusual activity on the Kerch Peninsula, but to bomb warehouses banned. Stalin planned to seize the Crimea and to finish the Germans started building. In 1944 the Soviet troops ousted the Nazis with a bang from the Crimea and on the shores of the Kerch Strait work started. The bridge length 4,5 kilometers has been built over 6,5 month. In November 1944 year he was admitted for temporary operation. In February 1945 until the bridge was the train of the Soviet delegation, who was returning from the Yalta Conference. A few days later it partially destroyed and powerful storm debacle of the Sea of ​​Azov. Shelling ice fields of coastal guns, their bombing from aircraft did not help – 15 intermediate spans were destroyed. In this case, no one was hurt. Stalin delving into the situation and not be penalized did not. After the war, a special commission examined the bridge, which decided on the design of the bridge high capital cost of about two billion rubles.

Construction of the railway bridge does not solve the problem of railway communication between Russia and Ukraine over the Kerch Strait.

From station to station Dzhankoi Crimea two kilometers electrified single-track, which severely limits the capacity of the transport corridor and requires a transition to electric traction. The same pattern and Taman part of the transport corridor from the station in Russia Caucasus: existing transport corridors through the Donbass – electrified double-track.

In April 2011 g. Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin said, Ukraine and Russia for 1,5 year plan to complete survey work on the project of a bridge across the Kerch Strait.

What will the Ukrainians and the Russians build a bridge across the sea and will be repaid if the billions invested in it? Expected, that the new bridge will pay for itself in 8-10 years. Now Kerch ferry service between the ports of “Crimea” and “Caucasus” on average carries up to 1,5 million tonnes of cargo and 0,5 million passengers per year.

Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev supports the early start of construction of the bridge over the Kerch. Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Crimea Temirgaliev cites, that the cost of the bridge, depending on the project, can reach $1,5 to 3 billion.

After 2013 year, during the visit of Ukrainian President Yanukovych in Moscow, the construction of the bridge was finally agreed upon in the package with the most important strategic decisions to grant financial assistance to Ukraine. A 30 January 2014 the first Cabinet said, that the construction of the “Eurasian” crossing will begin in 2016 year.