Ankara’s 36-km suburban train line starts running
A new suburban line named Başkentray started operations yesterday in Ankara after seven years of construction and renovation for an estimated cost of TL 1.22 billion
AFTER seven years of construction and re-novation, the Başkentray suburban line in the Turkish capital Ankara was opened yesterday with an inauguration ceremony attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım and other Turkish officials. The 36-kilometer Başkentray line will operate on 15 tracks and 23 stations between the eastern suburb of Kayaş, the city center and the Sincan suburb in west Ankara, according to Turkish State Railways (TCDD).
the opening ceremony, Erdoğan said Ankara had taken remarkable steps in modernizing the urban setting over the past 15 years. He said the renovated line will be free of charge until April 24.
Also speaking at the ceremony, Prime Minister Yıldırım said the project cost around TL 1.22 billion (nearly $293 million). Yıldırım said the project was completed in 20 months.
The prime minister also said that the station buildings for the Eryaman high-speed rail station have been completed for the residents of Yıldırım, Yenimahalle, Sincan and Etimesgut to benefit from the highspeed rail line.
Yıldırım also stressed that the Başkentray project has reduced the travel duration from Kayaş to Sincan to 45 minutes and all stations are designed for the convenience of people with disabilities.
The commuter line has been undergoing renovation work for the past seven years, and was completely closed in July 2016 for the final phase of construction. In order to serve high-speed trains, conventional trains and freight trains alongside the suburban system, the number of signalized and electrified tracks has been increased to four between the Ankara Train Station and Kayaş, five between the Ankara Train Station and Behiçbey, and six between the Behiçbey and Sincan stations.
As part of the project, a new central high-speed rail station entered into service in October 2016, while all 23 stations located on the line have been renovated or completely rebuilt. Eleven road underpasses were also built.
The service frequency will initially be every 15 minutes. Başkentray is expected to carry 500,000 commuters daily with departures every five minutes on 96 cars.
The line is integrated into the capital’s M1 metro line at Yenişehir - Sıhhiye, M4 metro line at Gar (Train Station), and with the light metro system Ankaray at two stations in Kurtuluş and Maltepe.
Ankara’s transport payment card “Ankarakart” will also be valid on the Başkentray system.
The line was first introduced in the late Ottoman period in 1892, while the suburban service was launched in 1929 and electrified in 1972.
As part of Turkey’s efforts to modernize its rail network in the last decade, a similar suburban rail project named İZBAN also entered into service in the western province of İzmir in 2010, connecting the northern district of Aliağa with the city center, Adnan Menderes Airport and the southern district of Selçuk on a line stretching 136 kilometers, serving 40 stations. When extended to the Bergama district, the length of the suburban line will reach 185 kilometers.
Currently, İZBAN operates 164 daily trains in both directions between Cumaovası and Aliağa. The entire line between Cumaovası and Aliağa is operated by the TCDD. There are also bus terminals integrated with several new stations.
Another suburban line renovation project named Marmaray is ongoing in Istanbul; currently five stations are in operation. The first tunnel crossing the Bosporus was built for the Marmaray project, and the line has been connecting two stations on the Asian side with three others on the European side since 2013. When fully completed in December 2018, the system will serve on a 76-kilometer line with 40 stations between the western suburb of Halkalı and the district of Gebze in Kocaeli province bordering Istanbul to its east.
In the southern province of Gaziantep, the Gaziray suburban rail project will serve on a 25-kilometer line on 17 stations when completed in late 2018.