Index of development of transport infrastructure as a factor of sustainable development of the coastal zone of the Sea of Azov, Russia

As a zone of interaction between land and sea, coastal zones are becoming a strategic area for achieving a sustainable expansion of economic space. The object of study is the coastal zone of the Sea of Azov (Rostov Region and Krasnodar Territory). The subject of the study is an assessment of the dynamics of transport infrastructure development index as a factor in the sustainable development of the coastal zone of the Sea of Azov. Methodological approaches to assessing the sustainable development of the territory were based on a methodology based on methods of system analysis, mathematical modeling, and GIS technologies. An indicator has been formulated that considers the area of the territory, the population, the length of public roads of local importance, the shipment of goods of local production, the work and services performed on their own, in order to measure the ‘economic’ load on the transport infrastructure. The analysis of the state of the transport infrastructure of the regions of the coastal zone for the period from 2015 to 2021 was carried out. Based on an analysis of the transport infrastructure index, it was concluded that the attraction of municipalities to the Rostov agglomeration, together with the strengthening of social, trade and infrastructure contacts with megacities will lead to a further increase in the anthropogenic load on the territory. The areas studied of the Krasnodar Territory belong to the Northern Economic Zone – a territory with a diversified economy, characterised by cross‐border links with neighboring regions. Highways are the most important link in the transport and logistics system. The level of development and the technical condition of the road network have a significant and diverse impact on the economic and social development of both the state as a whole and it individual regions.