“Zhukovsky was heard, there will be no LRT”

How an odious project united local society and authorities, forcing them to remember the principles of local self-government

At a meeting at the Committee on Architecture and Urban Planning of the Moscow Region on the development of projects for amending the General Plan, the exclusion of the light rail line from the General Plan of the city was officially announced.

Accordingly, this LRT line will be excluded from the territorial planning scheme for transport services in the Moscow region, which will finally close the issue of the project, which hung as a “sword of Damocles” over the city for two years. While it is not entirely clear whether this line will be moved or completely excluded from transport service plans, one thing is clear - the LRT line will not pass within the city of Zhukovsky.

Purely Zhukovsky story

The residents of Zhukovsky succeeded, and for the first time, for everyone: both the local authorities and the local society, which in most cases are on opposite sides of the barricades. But now the victory of some did not become the defeat of others, because everyone had the same goal - to exclude the LRT project from the central part of the city, with entry into the Tsagovo forest.
This is the result of the efforts of all Zhukovans. And those who came to the public hearings on the General Plan in September to express their opinions orally and in writing, and those who, after the public hearings, attacked the regional ministries with letters. Those who signed the appeal on the website of the Russian Public Initiative (ROI), and those who tried to organize a referendum on the issue of LRT. And those who gave “feedback” in the ballots for voting on amendments to the Constitution. And this is also the merit of the local authorities, executive and legislative, city-forming enterprises, which were able to oppose the regional project. TsAGI and Ramport JSC, the city’s Board of Directors, the Council of Deputies, the Public Chamber and trade unions made appeals to the head of the city. And the administration, represented by the head of the city, persistently responded to every official letter from the region with its objections to the LRT and road projects on the street. Grishchenko. Compared to 2018, when the former head of the city Andrei Voytyuk approved the LRT line on the street. Dzerzhinsky and Gorky, the picture has changed a lot, and most importantly - for the better.

I am absolutely sure that the main reason for the “exodus” of LRT from the city center is the consolidation of local authorities and society, as well as the unity of goals in the society itself. In my memory, this is the only precedent in the more than ten-year history of relations between society and government. And the main thing is a certain, albeit in a truncated form, return of the principles of local self-government, to which the regional authorities could not help but respond. In this case, looking for the motivation of the vertical of power is a pointless exercise; the fact itself is important. The fact of the unity of goals of the Zhukovsky community made it possible to overcome all circumstances and became an excellent force majeure in the existing coordinate system.

"Roller coaster" on the Zhukovsky landscape

The story of the LRT in Zhukovsky began in 2018, when the neighbors “kicked off” these benefits of civilization. Initially, it was decided to run the section from the Kazan direction railway to Zhukovsky airport from Udelnaya station, through the lands of Vereya and Bykovo, and then along the lands annexed to Zhukovsky to the airport. At the same time, the LRT was drawn directly across the territory of the Bazhenov Church, which is a monument of federal significance. Residents of the settlements did not remain silent, especially since at that time they had not yet managed to eliminate local self-government at this level, and gave clear “feedback” in the form of rallies and many appeals to various authorities. As a result, changes were made to the territorial planning scheme for transport services in the Moscow region (STP TO MO), excluding the LRT line through Vereya and Bykovo, and immediately “donating” it to Zhukovsky, led by Colonel Andrei Voytyuk, who does not discuss orders. In June 2018, Andrey Voytyuk approved the proposed project of a light rail line from the Otdykh station along the street. Dzerzhinsky through the old part of the city, entering the Tsagovsky forest. At the same time, in his characteristic manner, he brought even such a phanstasmagoria to complete absurdity, agreeing on a site on the street. Gorky in the tunnel. Naturally, in the interests of city residents, whom they forgot to ask and warn. The official response from the head of the territorial department of the Committee on Architecture and Urban Planning, Svetlana Yudina, outlined the goals of this light rail line - increasing the level of transport services in the Zhukovsky urban district, reducing the transport load on the road network by attracting passengers to the LRT, ensuring fast, convenient and reliable passenger service in the city.

Officials received feedback on their excessive concern for residents for the sake of the vertical power in September 2019 at public hearings, when they saw this LRT line in the draft General Plan, and for information purposes, because “everything has already been decided before you.” At this time, Andrei Voytyuk had already left the post of mayor of his own free will, going to work at TsAGI. The new head of the city, Yuri Prokhorov, during the public hearings, sent an appeal to the Committee on Architecture and Urban Planning of the Moscow Region with a request to exclude the LRT line from the draft General Plan. The basis for such an appeal, in addition to the opinion of city residents, were letters from TsAGI and Ramport JSC, which also reported the inexpediency of this project.

The minutes of public hearings on amendments to the General Plan of Zhukovsky clearly showed the opinion of residents who were invited to immerse themselves in the atmosphere of New Vasyuki: several thousand written and oral statements against the light rail project were received by the commission for holding public hearings. However, one more argument remained in the arsenal of regional officials: the LRT project cannot be removed from the draft General Plan until changes are made to the STP TO MO, the main document on transport projects in the region. But the Zhukovites did not let up. At all meetings in the regional department, representatives of Zhukovsky expressed their arguments against this project, and each time the argument increased and sharpened, and the intensity of passions did not subside. By the end of 2019, cautious optimism appeared, but in February 2020 it not only passed, but was also replaced by a state of hopelessness. However, the local community did not give up, sending verbal and non-verbal signs to the regional authorities in every possible way. The list of appeals against LRT began to grow - the Board of Directors, the Council of Deputies, the Public Chamber, trade unions. And residents organized flash mobs - collecting signatures for the ROI, applying for a referendum, using the ballot for voting on amendments to the Constitution as a form to express an opinion on the LRT. And at some point everything worked together.

Mayor of the city Yuri Prokhorov:

The two-year story with the LRT in Zhukovsky is coming to an end, and an optimistic one at that. What is the main secret of this success?

“I think the main thing is that Zhukovsky had a single voice in this situation, and the region heard him. I am grateful to all Zhukovsky residents for their active civic position, city-forming enterprises and public organizations for supporting the opinions of residents. The city administration expressed its position during public hearings in September 2019, and all this time we have consistently conveyed the consolidated opinion of the science city to all ministries and departments. I have always advocated interaction with regional ministries on the basis of dialogue. It is much more effective not to wait for instructions, but to participate in the formation of a decision, focusing management’s attention on risks and offering solutions that are adequate to the circumstances. And we managed to convey and explain what the city needs for careful development.

Governor of the Moscow Region Andrei Vorobyov heard the opinion of city residents and agreed with him. The authorities hear the people and this is very important; in our situation, the governor’s principle “the resident is always right” helped resolve a resonant issue. The head of the Committee on Architecture and Urban Planning, Vladislav Gordienko, instructed to make these changes to the draft General Plan of Zhukovsky and to the territorial planning scheme for transport services in the Moscow region. I am grateful to Vladislav Valerievich for his detailed study and understanding of the importance of the issue. Thanks to the actions of regional authorities, the opinion of city residents was translated into a decision, the recommendations of the society were heard and accepted.

That is, Zhukovans can rest assured that the LRT line will definitely not pass through the city streets?

— There will be no light rail line from Otdykh station through city streets and the city forest; whether this line will be excluded or moved is an open question, which is currently under development by the designers.

LRT is the most resonant issue of the General Plan, but far from the only one. For example, the same highway on the street. Grishchenko, drawn for informational purposes, because it was already approved with STP TO MO...

— This issue is now also being discussed at meetings in the Committee on Architecture and Urban Planning of the Moscow Region; the city administration, in all written appeals and reviews of the draft General Plan, advocates moving the highway away from residential buildings. Moreover, it was planned this way before. As we have seen, we are heard in the region, and a consolidated and reasoned position on urban issues allows us to achieve understanding. And I’m glad that over the past year we managed to return part of the park on the street to the city. Mayakovsky, exclude the LRT line, a positive solution is quite realistic on the street. Grishchenko.