Description of the attraction
About a thousand people live in the small village of Podborovye, Boksitogorsky District, but it was in this place in the fall of 1941 that the construction of a military road No. 102 began, which became an integral part of the famous Road of Life.
The legendary monument is erected near the railway station of the village of Podborovye, right at the station square. The history of the appearance and formation of the memorial monument is described in detail in the books dedicated to the blockade of Leningrad. The monument is a car "ZIS-5" - a popular "lorry", which became an unusual monument, forever perpetuating the memory of the valiant exploits of the drivers of the Road of Life built at that time. As noted, the construction of the road began at the end of November - early December 1941 - just at this time the fascist invaders attacked Tikhvin, which is why all the available points of equipment in the city of Leningrad were moved to two stations: Podborovye and Zaborie.
The capture of Tikhvin took place on September 8, which completely blocked the Tikhvin-Volkhov train line, which carried a special strategic purpose for the defensive tactics of Leningrad. The current situation demanded an immediate decision on the construction of a military road running from the Zaborye railway station and directly to Lake Ladoga. The constructed road was named "Military Highway No. 102" or VAD-102. The road passed along difficult routes in some districts of the Leningrad Region. Along with local residents, Soviet soldiers also paved the road, even children and women helped in this difficult task. At this time, the first snow fell, covering the ground with an ice crust, but the felling of trees, the uprooting of roots and the movement of boulders continued with a vengeance. After two weeks, the first road convoy with the necessary ammunition and food for the captured city was already able to pass along the road. The total length of VAD-102 was more than 300 km and became an important part of the Road of Life.
The ZIS-5 monument became a monument dedicated to all those vehicles that transported vital cargoes in both directions. Not far from it there is a monument to all the fallen soldiers and soldiers who gave their lives in the struggle for their homeland. The construction of the monument was an initiative of the inhabitants of the village of Podborovye, which was opened in 1968. The weight of the truck mounted on a concrete pedestal was about three tons. In front of the ZIS-5 truck there is a board on which a diagram of a section of the same Road of Life is drawn, and there is also an inscription “Here the Road of Life began. November-December 1941 . A guard tape is painted on a high pedestal near the front left wheel of the truck.
The monument to the car "ZIS-5" is part of the "Green Belt of Glory of Leningrad". Some time before this, the territory was completely fenced, and only the gate remained from the fence. A path made of concrete leads directly to the memorial from the partially intact gate.
In May 2005, large-scale work was carried out to reconstruct the monument to the first Road of Life in Podborovye. The monument located at the station was carefully restored in honor of the 60th anniversary of the Great Victory and was completely restored to its proper form. In addition, a commemorative plaque near the car was renewed. All work was carried out using the funds of the Leningrad region with the involvement of local entrepreneurs.
Until now, the Road of Life, about which so little information has reached us, is still "alive" in the minds of local residents. It was along this route that the legendary ZIS-5 trucks carried up to five hundred tons of cargo a day, which prevented them from perishing in the most terrible and desperate days of the 1941 siege of Leningrad. Only the incredible efforts of local residents and Soviet soldiers helped to win the bloody battle with the Nazi troops. The road of life became a key link in the supply and subsequent liberation of Leningrad.
