I don’t think there’s much to say about the M4 “Don” - all community members will drive it with their eyes closed at an average speed of 110 km/h. The problems are the same - the Voronezh rim and the Tarasovsky district, where a meat accident happened in front of us at the narrowing site.
On the territory of the Krasnodar Territory, the “Caucasus” is an ordinary unpleasant Russian two-lane road, with traffic policemen grazing on every hill and turn. Interestingly, the quality continues to improve.
The Stavropol region is unremarkable. The road is good, there are a lot of cops, but they don’t slow down for no reason. At the exit from the region there are the so-called resort towns of Mineralnye Vody and Pyatigorsk. Essentuki is a little further. It’s not worth staying in these cities, and there are practically no places in filthy hotels, and from what there is, they cost some incredible money.
Kabardino-Balkaria. A small traffic police post, a random stop, we pass. Suddenly clear fourteenths and no less clear priors appear on the roads. Tinted, of course, all around. According to subjective impressions, people in the republic prefer black color
Here they drive either slowly or boldly - they do not hesitate to go completely into oncoming traffic and hit them in the forehead to the last. Driving in the traffic lane is a shame.
And the road is improving - it is already a permanent 4-lane road with a divider.
At the entrance to North Ossetia there is the most serious checkpoint on the way from Moscow to Tbilisi. They slow down everyone, including us. I previously, back in Essentuki, put him behind the wheel mexdrive , to doubly distract the attention of the gays. The plan worked, but every next one, even the smallest Ossetian post, was ours. No one looked at the documents - they only pretended to.
Immediately after Vladikavkaz the mountains begin.
In front of the Verkhniy Lars checkpoint we stood in line for 2 hours, partly because of the assholes who consider it beneath their dignity to stand with everyone. The same thing happened on the other side. We jumped back without a queue.
Passing the checkpoint. Everything seems to be serious. They didn’t bother with the convertible, but they charged Range a symbolic 500 rubles for travel without a total inspection.
They didn’t lie about the Georgian checkpoint “Kazbegi” - you open the window, hand over your passport, smile at the webcam and drive off calmly.
What's there in a nutshell?
The M29 “Caucasus” highway is awesome, no one extorts money or shoots you in the head, at least on the section up to Vladikavkaz. The most serious post is Kabardino-Balkaria - North Ossetia.
I have traveled very little by car in Russia. Almost all trips outside the Belgorod region were limited to the M-4 highway (from Moscow to Krasnodar). I am one of those who believe in stereotypes about “bad roads” in our country, and therefore I try to avoid traveling on them. But we firmly decided to go to Chechnya by car. Half of the journey (to Rostov-on-Don) promised to be expectedly good, but I didn’t find any clear reviews on the Internet about the road along the “Caucasus”. Therefore, having mentally prepared ourselves for the bad road, we hit the road.
1
. A few kilometers after exiting the M-4, the highway began to live up to my expectations, narrowing to two lanes with a very uneven surface. The navigator showed more than 700 kilometers to the destination, and I was slightly depressed. However, at some point we were lucky - a motorcade of seven police cars rushing by with their flashing lights turned on pressed a line of endless heavy trucks to the side of the road and we were able to pass them.
2 . However, the joy was short-lived - soon areas with repair work began to appear, and then I became completely depressed. Somewhere near Tikhoretsk, the flow speed generally dropped to 20 kilometers per hour, and then all traffic moved to the side of the road. “If this continues, then I will turn around and take you to Crimea!”- I told Natasha. But, fortunately, my patience turned out to last longer than the narrow strip of M-29, and already at the entrance to the Novokubansky district, an asphalt sea opened in front of us - a wide strip of fresh asphalt with separated traffic flows. In total, only the first 90 kilometers of the Caucasus federal highway turned out to be “bad”.
4 . The mood improved along with the quality of the surface, and the stereotype about “bad Russian roads” was left behind. At some point we even began to admire the scale of road construction. Fresh Navitel maps, downloaded two days before the trip, could not always indicate the route correctly. Sometimes the navigator showed that we were driving through a field, although in practice this field was already a good section of the highway. Somewhere after Mineralnye Vody we arrived at the first of the sections with a permitted maximum speed of 110 km/h. There will be several more of them on our way.
The section of M-29, about a hundred kilometers long, running through the territory of Kabardino-Balkaria, caused disappointment. And he was upset not so much by the quality of the road surface, but by the werewolves in uniform grazing behind every bush. In Kabardino-Balkaria, the Caucasus highway consists of three lanes (obviously, it was decided to save money on a full-fledged fourth). They alternate - sometimes two lanes for our side, then two for the oncoming side. That is, the middle lane is such pockets for overtaking, an opportunity to pass the line of trucks that has accumulated in front of you. It was on one of these segments that I got caught - out of habit, seeing a widening ahead, I went out to overtake, but already completing the maneuver, I realized that this was a left turn lane. Having dived from it into the right lane, after a couple of hundred meters I was stopped by happy men with a striped stick, who had gathered an impressive column of “vagrants” like me on the side of the road.
Here, for the first time in my Russian practice, I had to give a bribe. In all seriousness - in almost five years of driving experience, no one has demanded a bribe from me, I thought that they no longer do this in our country. Yeah, of course! The local Gaians taught me all the basics of extortion, and I, not wanting to waste time, paid myself off.
By the way, on the way back home we were also caught in Kabardino-Balkaria! Moreover, realizing that I was savvy in knowledge of the laws, and it would not be possible to hit the jackpot for the alleged “violation,” the local cop (I dare not call these scammers “policemen”) got to the bottom of my outstanding fines and offered to go to the impound lot. As a result, having knocked down his original price tag three times, I finally paid and left.
In general, I don’t know anything about Kabardino-Balkaria, but now there are persistently unpleasant associations with it. So no photos. We only uncovered the camera at the entrance to North Ossetia.
6 . In Ossetia, roads are also being actively reconstructed. There are many new plots, many under construction.
7 . True, after the bridge over the Terek there is a section of about thirty kilometers (by eye), which consists of only two lanes. There's a nice line of trucks accumulated there. For some reason, we have practically no photographs from bad sections; only the brand new sections of the highway aroused the desire to take photographs.
8 . For example, these. Somewhere on the approaches to Beslan, so many new interchanges were built that even Navitel did not know about them.
9 . I also liked that in many areas of the Caucasus they use concrete barriers for dividing strips. This is very correct, it is a pity that such experience is not practiced in our area.
10 . About ten kilometers from Beslan along the M-29 highway there is a large checkpoint. Having passed it, we gradually began to notice that something had changed in the surrounding landscape, but for a long time we could not understand what exactly... It turned out that there is no clearly defined border between North Ossetia and Ingushetia, and there are no noticeable signs warning about it. But the contrast between Orthodox Ossetia and Muslim Ingushetia is noticeable in many ways - in the architecture of buildings, in the clothing and appearance of local residents.
11 . Along Nazran the road stretches a narrow strip, on which you can often meet cows that are “impenetrable” in their tranquility. Another interesting local feature is the roadside poles, along the entire route, painted in the colors of the Ingush and Russian flags.
12 . Over time, we reach a new section of the road. “Oh, we’re probably already in Chechnya”— we joke with Natasha. However, this is still the Ingush Republic. There is also no clear border between Chechnya and Ingushetia.
13 . When there is no doubt that we have entered Chechnya, the road becomes ideal. A good highway with a permitted speed of 110 kilometers per hour pleases us for quite a long time.
14. At the approaches to Grozny, however, the road again narrows to two lanes. Here, by the way, the vast majority tries to adhere to the speed limit, and traffic police crews met several times at intersections. But we’re almost there and we’re in no hurry.
15 . We are approaching Grozny. Here the M-29 continues to go straight towards Dagestan. We'll soon turn left.
16 . The last few kilometers to the city limits.
17 . In unreconstructed areas, work is in full swing.
18 . Here we are in Grozny. 770 kilometers along M-29, most of which are good and very good roads. My fears about “one of the main Russian troubles” on the Caucasus highway were in vain. I am sure that in the next few years the problem areas will also be expanded, new asphalt will be laid where necessary, and this federal highway will be no worse than the M-4. We still need to sort out bribery in certain areas...
Well, I’ll tell you about Grozny and Chechnya, local roads and customs next time. By the way, you can ask questions about the Chechen Republic in the comments, I will try to tell you based on personal experience.
There is nothing more exciting than a long journey in your own car across our vast country. This is a long but exciting adventure that is sure to leave some impressions. The M29 highway is one of the most picturesque Russian roads, because it passes through wonderful places. Unfortunately, many drivers are biased towards the Caucasus region and spread false information about the quality of the federal highway and safety when driving along it.
Features of the route
The whole of Russia is intertwined with a network of automobile significance, but nowhere are there such features as on the M29 highway. Since the road runs through the Caucasus region, which has long been famous for the wayward local population, it will not be possible to drive along it very quickly.
First of all, because there you can meet a huge number of tuned cars and lowered Priors, whose drivers perceive any overtaking as a challenge and an invitation to the race. However, it is still not worth organizing races. Especially if you take into account the different quality of the road surface on different sections of the route. Oddly enough, the most comfortable section of the road passes through Chechnya. In addition, in the summer the highway cannot cope with the flow of cars. This is mainly due to fruit trucks and cars of travelers going to the sea.
Another and most significant feature is the reinforced traffic police posts and real paramilitary checkpoints. It will not be possible to drive through these sections quickly, since the flow of cars is divided into 2: those who want to drive through as usual and those who are in a hurry. The queue will form in any case, so it is unlikely that you will be able to get around it.
Entry into Chechnya is possible with any license plate; Chechen license plates are not required. However, Moscow numbers are really rare there for obvious reasons.
No tinting!
If you need to visit the city of Grozny or drive along the Chechen section of the M29 highway, you need to follow the main rule, namely, remove the tint. The region is not famous for tranquility, and tinting is an excellent reason for the traffic police patrol to stop the car. Also, tinting can raise a lot of questions among local residents. No one can say which is better and which is worse.
Be careful with gas stations!
In general, the M29 highway is calm and fairly well-maintained. However, in some areas there is a problem with gas stations. This most concerns Kabardino-Balkaria, Ingushetia, North Ossetia and Dagestan. There are gas stations there, but the quality of the fuel is very low. When traveling around Chechnya or simply visiting any of the named regions, it is not advisable to refuel at local gas stations. It is recommended to always have a supply of high-quality fuel and a spare fuel filter with you if you still need to refuel in the region. It's best to have enough fuel and two filters, just in case. If there is a need for practical recommendations, it is best to ask truckers and tourist bus drivers; they have unpleasant stories associated with breakdowns due to local fuel. Their advice will be very useful, because they can recommend good car services and more or less reliable gas stations.
Road surface quality
Roads in Russia are not famous for their excellent quality, but quite the opposite, they are famous for constant potholes. However, the M29 has a satisfactory asphalt surface. This is especially true for approaches to the highway, its beginning and exits from it. The first 100 km of the route pass along a road that drivers in the jargon call “killed”. However, the further the journey, the better the road.
Striped menace
When driving along the M29 "Caucasus" highway, you need to be as attentive as possible to oncoming traffic. Drivers of oncoming cars constantly warn about the so-called “striped threat.” Traffic police officers or security cameras are everywhere. In the Stavropol Territory, the situation with traffic police is improving. Their concentration decreases, and stops occur only when an offense is recorded. However, drivers become less polite and often forget to warn about the “danger”.
Driving Rules
The M29 highway today is an amazing place. For the first half of the road, normal traffic rules apply. However, in Kabardino-Balkaria, Ingushetia, North Ossetia or Dagestan the rules are slightly different. Drivers often completely ignore road markings and signs. There you should drive either as slowly as possible or greatly exceed the speed limit. The habit of looking in mirrors will be no less important. Local drivers overtake anywhere and anyhow, often do not use turn signals and make maneuvers at the very last moment, and to all this we can safely add a significant excess of the permissible speed limit.
Federal highway M-29 "Caucasus" (number valid until December 31, 2017), new highway number P-217 "Caucasus". The road runs through the territories of the Krasnodar and Stavropol territories, Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia, Ingushetia, Chechnya, and Dagestan. The public highway M-29 connects with the federal highway M-4 and starts from the village of Pavlovskaya in the Krasnodar Territory and ends in Magaramkent in Dagestan, on the border with Azerbaijan.The total length of the M-29 highway is 1,118 kilometers. The section of the Pavlovskaya – Makhachkala road is part of the European route E 50. The section of the Makhachkala – Azerbaijan border highway is part of the European route E 119 and the Asian route AH8.
At the 229th kilometer of the highway, near the village of Kochubeevskoye, the A-155 road departs to Cherkessk, the capital of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic. At the 233rd kilometer of the Caucasus highway there is a turn onto the A-154 road, which goes to Stavropol. At kilometer 559, near the city of Beslan, the third largest city in North Ossetia, there is a turnoff to the A-301 highway in the direction of Vladikavkaz. The route has access to the cities of Armavir and Grozny, as well as bypasses to the cities of Pyatigorsk and Makhachkala. The federal highway M-29 ends at the state border of the Russian Federation and Azerbaijan. The last settlement here is the village of Gaptsakh, which is located 6 km north of the regional center - the village of Magaramkent.
The road, with a carriageway width of 8 meters, passes through mountainous terrain and has an asphalt concrete surface along its entire length. There are areas on the road that require special attention from drivers, this is indicated on the signs. At kilometer 1164 the road enters a 1.8 km long tunnel.
The route crosses several rivers, the most significant of which are: near the city of Kropotkin, the Kuban River; the Terek River near the village of Elkhotovo; Argun River near the city of the same name. The load capacity of bridges is from 60 tons.
M-29 "Caucasus" is the main highway of the North Caucasus.
