Vladimir Putin planning SUPER HIGHWAY linking UK with America via Russia
RUSSIAN authorities have revealed outlandish plans that they claim could one day see London linked to New York by a high-speed road and rail network through Russia.
The project, which officials say would cost “trillions of dollars”, is being considered by president Vladimir Putin after being submitted by a close friend of the ex-KGB strongman.
The proposal would include a 12,400 mile stretch of motorway from Western Europe to Alaska via Moscow and a host of remote Russian towns.
The improbable Trans-Eurasian Belt Development – which could eventually cross the Bering Strait to the US – is being touted by one of Russia’s most powerful tycoons.
The costly plans are unlikely to be of much use to travellers in the UK, as a flight from London to New York currently takes six or seven hours.
The equivalent overland trip would take several days across Russia‘s vast territory.
The head of the Russian Railways Vladimir Yakunin, who submitted the proposal, is currently under a US travel ban following his country’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict.
According to the Siberian Times, Mr Yakunin announced the outlandish scheme during a meeting of senior government officials this week.
He told the Russian Academy of Science the economic returns would outweigh the huge cost of the network.
Mr Yakunin said the project would see a new train network built alongside the ageing Trans-Siberian Railway as well as the construction of major roads and pipelines for oil and gas.
The senior official is a controversial figure in the West, known as an outspoken critic of civil liberties.
He has in the past complained about “the way the minorities are taking over” and “homosexual propaganda”.
As part of the US sanctions, he has also had his assets frozen and a ban on business transactions with American citizens.
Russia's existing transport network is unreliable and the roads deteriorate the further east you travel.
The plan would allow British passengers travelling by Eurostar to Paris an uninterrupted rail route crossing Europe and Asia, with developers claiming it would boost tourism and the global economy.
Mark Smith, a railway expert at Seat61.com, said the project was "unlikely to please anyone except those in intermediate cities".
He told Express.co.uk: "This isn't the first such rumour - but I'll believe it when I see it.
"I suspect this won't be fast enough to woo the fliers, nor as interesting an experience as a fabulous journey on the current leisurely Trans-Siberian Railway.
Vladimir Fortov, the Head of the Russian Academy of Science, said the project was "very ambitious and expensive".
But he added: "It will solve many problems in the development of the vast region. It is connected with social programs, and new fields, new energy resources, and so on.
"The idea is that basing on the new technology of high-speed rail transport we can build a new railway near the Trans-Siberian Railway, with the opportunity to go to Chukotka and Bering Strait and then to the American continent."
Separately, the European Union is considering plans fort a high-speed rail network to connect the Baltic states neighbouring Russia with eastern Europe.
