Avtodor is ready to raise the speed limit on the M-12 highway and install cameras there

The state company Avtodor warned about the possible appearance of traffic cameras on the M-12 highway. So far, it remains the only road in Russia where for more than 400 km there is not a single complex of automatic recording of violations. At the same time, Avtodor does not rule out raising the speed limit on the M-12 – from 110 to 130 km/h. To do this, the state-owned company needs to resolve a number of legal issues, in particular, increase the category of the road.

On Friday, Avtodor presented an interview with the head of the state-owned company, Vyacheslav Petushenko, during which he spoke about the prospects for the development of the M-12 Vostok highway. Now, let us remind you that the road operates in a toll mode on the Moscow-Arzamas section with a length of 415 km. By the end of the year, travel along the highway is expected to open all the way to Kazan.

So far, the Vostok highway remains the only road in Russia where for more than 400 km you will not find a single complex of automatic detection of violations. Mr. Petushenko did not rule out their appearance.

“It all depends on us, the drivers, how we will comply with the traffic rules,” he said. “If we mess around and the number of accidents will increase, including deaths, then we will install cameras. The way we drive is the way we will manage this road.”

At the same time, Vyacheslav Petushenko did not rule out that the permitted speed on the M-12 will be increased – from 110 to 130 km/h. However, no specific dates have been announced. Mr. Petushenko only cited the M-11 as an example: in summer it is allowed to accelerate to 130 km/h, in winter the limit is set at 110 km/h.

“You can do without cameras on high-speed roads,” says Igor Morzharetto, a member of the public council of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, auto expert. “Control is needed to prevent accidents, but the experience of operating high-speed roads shows that the accident rate on them is half as high as on ordinary highways. Primarily due to the high level of technical support – lighting, interchanges, separation barriers, and the absence of pedestrian crossings.”

Accidents on the M-12 will increase along with the growth of traffic, this is a natural process, this has happened previously on other highways, says Petr Shkumatov, coordinator of the Blue Buckets movement. At the moment, it is difficult to objectively assess the dynamics of the number of accidents: throughout 2023, different sections of the road were opened, and the statistics are kept uniform for the entire route. According to the traffic police, in January there were 5 accidents on M-12 without deaths, in March – 14 with 2 deaths, in May – 18 with 7 deaths, in July – 25 with 9 deaths, in August – 35 accidents with 10 deaths, in September – 36 accidents with 11 deaths. In its current configuration – from the Moscow Ring Road to Arzamas – the route has been operating only since September 8.

“Sooner or later cameras will appear on the M-12,” Mr. Shkumatov is sure. At the same time, if the state company sets a speed limit of 130 km/h, it will not create discomfort for drivers, the expert believes, because in fact most drivers rarely exceed this limit.

This thesis is confirmed by Mr. Morzharetto: on highways, the main traffic moves, as a rule, no faster than 120–140 km/h, with the exception of individual “flyers”. “Everyone is so comfortable, no one controls it,” he notes.

Mr. Shkumatov adds that most drivers, against the backdrop of rising gasoline prices and travel tariffs (on the M-12 to Arzamas, the price is 2.8 thousand rubles for passenger cars), began to count their money much more carefully: drive faster than 110–130 km/ h is expensive – it costs more due to high fuel consumption. Thus, all time savings obtained due to high speed are “burned out” at gas stations. Igor Morzharetto believes that it is too early to set 130 km/h on the M-12, “we need to see how the highway will be operated at 110 km/h, whether there will be a large number of accidents, and so on.” “Let’s roll out 110, then look at 130,”— said in September and Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin.

The current traffic rules, let us remind you, allow road owners to increase the speed limit on road sections to 130 km/h when installing a 5.1 “Highway” sign on a green background. According to the official classification enshrined in GOST, highways include roads of the highest category 1A, while M-12 was originally designed and belongs to the lower category 1B (the main differences are in the geometry of turns and elevation differences). For this reason, it is formally considered not a motorway, but an “express road”, like the Moscow Ring Road: the signs used on it are made on a blue background. Kommersant’s sources confirm that Avtodor will need to somehow change the category of the track so that it can accelerate to 130 km/h.

Ivan Buranov