Motor rally from Atlantic to Pacific oceans confirms high class of Russian trucks

Transcontinental motor rally Lisbon-Vladivostok confirmed the high-class readiness of Russian trucks and their compliance with the international standards. This was disclosed on Wednesday at the press-conference in Vladivostok by Head of the Russian Federal Road Agency Anatoly Nasonov while commenting on the results of the motor rally, which ended yesterday in Vladivostok (Russia's Far East).

According to him, the motor rally once again proved the possibility of opening of the transcontinental expressway, which would be of the high importance for the development of economic ties and foreign trade between the West and the East of Eurasia.

"The motor rally opens new transport possibilities for business partnership between Russia and European countries," Mr. Nasonov believes.

According to the participants in the motor rally, the most difficult part of the rally was the Chita-Khabarovsk stretch, which is still under construction. This particular highway was opened on February 26, 2004. However, many parts of this highway still need asphalt pavement.

However, the participants in the motor rally gave a positive evaluation of the Chita-Khabarovsk highway. Gas stations, nutrition and recreation facilities as well as technical services appear on the highway and the traffic becomes more and more intense.

The international motor rally started on May 24 in Lisbon. Russian Transportation Ministry, Russian Association of International Cargo Carriers and International Union of Automobile Transportation were the organizers of the motor rally.

The motor rally "from the ocean to the ocean" was aimed to demonstrate the possibilities of cargo transportation by means of trucks.

The motorcade consisting of Russian and foreign trucks, having covered the distance of 15,000 km, proved the possibility of transcontinental cargo delivery by means of trucks.

KamAZ, Mercedes Benz and Sommer Novtruck trucks covered the following route: Lisbon - Madrid - Paris - Brussels - Amsterdam - Berlin - Warsaw - Brest - Minsk - Smolensk - Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod - Kazan - Omsk - Novosibirsk - Krasnoyarsk - Irkutsk - Ulan-Ude - Chita - Svobodny - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok.

The motorcade started from Moscow to Vladivostok on June 12 - Russia's Independence Day. It reached the shores of the Pacific Ocean on the pre-set date.