Penza, 27 January 2016. PenzaNews. The Penza officials are musing a proposal to transform the upper section of Moskovskaya street into a pedestrian zone and restore it to its historical exterior.

© PenzaNewsBuy the photo

If that plan is fulfilled, the city will have a beautiful street with a solid pedestrian zone, explained Alexei Ryabov,head of the Economic Development Department in the city administration.

“At the moment, if we consider it going from the Drama Theater to Kuraeva street, it does not conform to urban planning requirements,” he said during the hearings on parking lots and zones management in Penza that took place on Wednesday, January 27.

Alexei Ryabov noted that the foreigners that are expected to visit Penza during the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches in Mordovia may be confused by the current urban planning scheme, as they are acquainted to the pedestrian streets of Prague and Tallinn.

The Penza Duma deputy Sergei Kulichkov disagreed with that, and added that making the upper section of Moskovskaya street a pedestrian-only zone will only worsen the traffic situation.

“What’s the use?” he asked.

Instead, the deputy suggested to ban parking in the upper section of Moskovskaya street, but keep it available for the cars, as the city center is very traffic-heavy.

“If some traffic goes through there, it will only improve the transport situation,” he stressed.