In the 1830s intensive constructing railways in France, Germany, Belgium, USA attracted attention of Russian engineers and industrialists. Basing on foreign experience, professors P.P. Mel'nikov, N.O. Kraft, A.D. Gotman, and others in 1841 developed a project of the railway from St. Petersburg to Moscow. On the results of the researches a map of the straight direction was made, detailed reports on the explored area were presented. The construction of the road began in the summer of 1843, opening of traffic movement on the road took place in 1851.