New tundra highway

The positive signals from the federal center came during the recent Russian Transport Forum in Moscow, Gaplikov says to the regional government website.

The road will be 1085 km long and have a projected cost of 4,84 billion rubles. It will be built based on a public-private partnership, the regional leader says.

Parts of the road already exists but is in dire need of upgrade. Construction is due to start in 2016 and be completed in 2019. Gaplikov hopes the federal ministry will contribute with two billion rubles through the Federal Road Agency.

Currently, there is no road connection between the Komi Republic and the neighboring Nenets Autonoumous Region. The construction of a road connection between Nenets capital Naryan-Mar and the Komi town of Usinsk started already in 1991 but is still not completed. About 80 km of the road now remains to be built.