(Eagle News Service) – Russian President Vladimir Putin officially opened the newly-built railway bridge that connects Crimea and Mainland Russia last December 23, 2019.
The Tavria express passenger train from St. Petersburg to Sevastopol was the first to travel to the Crimean Peninsula via the Crimean Bridge.
In his speech at the opening of the Crimea railway route, Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized its significance: “It is important for Crimea, Sevastopol, the entire south of Russia and the whole of Russia, because, of course, such infrastructure facilities as this tremendous bridge will influence the entire economy.”
Restoring not launching
Putin touched on history by recalling that “originally, train traffic to St Petersburg – and the first train from St Petersburg to Sevastopol – was launched 145 years ago. Over the course of Russian history, this train service has been interrupted only three times: during the 1917 October Revolution, during the Great Patriotic War and in 2014. You have restored it, although, the route is different, but it is a solid and reliable route.”
He announced that almost 14 million passengers and 13 million tonnes of cargo are expected next year.
With this project, Putin said that “Russia is capable of implementing infrastructure projects at the global level. You have shown that we can carry out such large-scale projects using our own technological base. Without exaggeration, this gives almost everyone confidence that we will be able to implement such projects in the future.
In his speech, he also thanked the builders, engineers, scientists, archeologists, and environmentalists. “This is a great, enormous and powerful team uniting people from all across Russia from the Far East to its European part.”
Longest in Russia and Europe
The 19-km-long Crimea Bridge is the longest in Europe which Putin called “not a bridge but a beauty” as he took a ride in the driver’s cabin.
The Crimean Bridge is the longest bridge in Russia and Europe. Starting on the Taman Peninsula, it runs along a 5-km long dam and Tuzla Island, crosses the Kerch Strait and ends on the Crimean coast. The bridge ensures uninterrupted traffic between Crimea and other Russian regions.
Automobile traffic across the bridge, was opened earlier in May 2018. The transport crossing consists of a motorway and a railway running parallel to each other. Freight traffic was launched in the autumn of 2018.
Reports say that the bridge which consists of a parallel automobile and railway sections is worth $3.6 billion (€3.25 billion). The railway bridge will open to freight trains in June 2020.
The opening of the bridge to commuter traffic now makes it possible to travel between St. Petersburg and Sevastopol, for nearly 43 hours.
RT reported that the construction of the bridge kicked off in February 2016, less than two years after the Crimean people voted to reunite with Russia in a referendum.
