| Istanbul Metro İstanbul Metrosu |
|
|---|---|
| Info | |
| Owner | Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality |
| Locale | Istanbul |
| Transit type | Rapid transit |
| Number of lines | 1 European line (in service, currently being extended); 1 Asian line (under construction) |
| Number of stations | 13 in service; 22 under construction |
| Operation | |
| Began operation | 2000 |
| Operator(s) | İstanbul Ulaşım A.Ş. |
| Number of vehicles | 124 [1] |
| Technical | |
The Istanbul Metro, is a mass-transit underground railway network that serves the city of Istanbul, Turkey. Founded in 2000, it now includes 13 stations. The system currently consists of a single north-south line called M2. It is serpentine shaped and is fully underground, running from the Hacıosman station in the north to the Şişhane station at Beyoğlu in the south.
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The oldest underground urban rail line in Istanbul is the Tünel, which entered service on January 17, 1875.[2] It is the world's second-oldest subterranean urban rail line after the London Underground (1863), and the first subterranean urban rail line in continental Europe; though the first full subway line with multiple underground stations in continental Europe was Line 1 of the Budapest Metro (1896).
The Istanbul LRT, which consists of the M1 and T4 lines, with a total of 36 stations (including 12 underground and 3 viaduct stations) entered service on September 3, 1989. The total length of the Istanbul LRT network is 132 kilometres (80.4 kilometres underground.)
The first master plan for a full metro network in Istanbul, titled Avant Projet d'un Métropolitain à Constantinople and conceived by the French engineer L. Guerby, dates to January 10, 1912. The plan comprised a total of 24 subway stations between the Topkapı and Şişli districts and included a connection through the Golden Horn. Each station would have a 75 metre platform next to the rail line, while the distance between stations varied from 220 to 975 metres. The blueprints of the project, which was never realized, are today displayed at the Istanbul Technical University Museum.
In 1936 the French urban planner Prost proposed a metro network between the districts of Taksim and Beyazıt, to the north and south of the Golden Horn, respectively. In October 1951 the Dutch firm Nedeco proposed a similar route between Taksim and Beyazıt, and in September 1952 the Director of the Paris Transportation Department, Marc Langevin, prepared a 14-chapter report together with his associate Louis Meizzonet for the implementation of the project and its integration with the other means of public transportation in the city. However, these plans never came into effect and all proposals were put on hold until 1987, when the planning for the current Istanbul Metro was made.
Construction of the Istanbul Metro, also known as the M2, began on September 11, 1992, but faced many challenges due to the numerous archaeological sites that were discovered during the drilling process, which slowed down or fully stopped the construction of many stations. Taking into account the seismic activity in Istanbul, the entire subway network was built with the cut-and-cover method to withstand an earthquake of up to 9.0 on the Richter magnitude scale.
The first section between Taksim and 4. Levent entered service, after some delays, on September 16, 2000. This line is 8.5 km (5.3 mi) long and has 6 stations, which all look similar but are in different colours. In 2000, there were 8 Alstom-built 4-car train sets in service, which ran every 5 minutes on average and transported 130,000 passengers daily. On January 30, 2009, the first train sets built by Eurotem entered service.[3] Eurotem will build a total of 92 new wagons for the M2 line.[3][4] As of January 30, 2009, a total of 34 train sets, each with 4 cars, were being used on the M2 line.[4]
A northern extension from 4. Levent to Maslak was opened on January 30, 2009.[5] On September 2, 2010 the northern (temporary) terminus Darüşşafaka followed.[6] The southern extension of the M2 line from Taksim to Yenikapı, across the Golden Horn on a bridge and underground through the historic peninsula, has thus far been completed up to the Şişhane station in Beyoğlu, which also entered service on January 30, 2009.[5] When completed, the Taksim-Yenikapı extension will be 5.2 km long, with four stations (including the Taksim and Şişhane stations currently in service.) The total cost of the extension will be $593 million.[3] At Yenikapı it will intersect with the extended light metro and the suburban train lines.
The trip between the Şişhane station in Beyoğlu and the Haciosman station in Maslak is 20 km (12.4 mi) long and takes 27 minutes; including Şişhane - Taksim (1.65 km, 2 minutes), Taksim - 4. Levent (8.5 km, 12 minutes), and 4. Levent - Haciosman (8.1 km, 12 minutes.)[7]
The total length of the European side of the M2 line will reach 23 km (14.3 mi) when all 16 stations from Hacıosman to Yenikapı will be completed;[8][9][10] not including the 936 metres long Golden Horn metro bridge,[11] the 0.6 km long Taksim-Kabataş tunnel connection with the Seabus port,[12] the 0.6 km long Yenikapı-Aksaray tunnel connection with the LRT network,[10] and the 13.6 km long Marmaray tunnel.[13]
On the Asian side, construction of the 26.5 km (16.5 mi) long M4 line from Kadıköy to Kaynarca continues, which will have a total of 19 stations.[14]
The Marmaray tunnel (Bosporus undersea railway tunnel) will connect the metro lines of the Asian and European parts of the city. According to the scheduled construction timeline, the tunnel will enter service in 2012.
From north to south:[8][9][10]
1. Hacıosman (2011)
2. Darüşşafaka (2010)
3. Atatürk Oto Sanayi (2009)
4. İTÜ - Ayazağa (2009)
5. Seyrantepe - Stadyum (2010)
6. Sanayi Mahallesi (2009)
7. 4. Levent (2000)
8. Levent (2000)
9. Gayrettepe (2000)
10. Şişli - Mecidiyeköy (2000)
11. Osmanbey (2000)
12. Taksim (2000) - connected with the Kabataş Seabus port via a 0.6 km (0.4 mi) long modern underground funicular line since 2006[12]
13. Şişhane (2009)
14. Unkapanı (under construction)
15. Şehzadebaşı (under construction)
16. Yenikapı (under construction) - to be connected via a 0.6 km (0.4 mi) long tunnel with the Aksaray station of the Istanbul LRT network; with the Yenikapı Seabus port; and with the Marmaray tunnel[10]
All stations are underground and have island platforms. Taksim, which is a major interchange point between the Istanbul Metro, the Taksim-Kabataş underground funicular, the Nostalgic Tram, and the Tünel underground funicular, is the busiest station of the network, with 16 escalators. Stations look similar, although a different color was chosen for each of them.
Two new extensions of the line, to the north and south, have entered service on January 30, 2009. In total, the newly extended line consists of eleven stations. The tunnel between Şişhane and Taksim passes under the pedestrian-only İstiklal Avenue, and the Şişhane station has a gate exiting to İstiklâl Avenue at the Tünel end.[15]
The northward extension to the Türk Telekom Arena, the new stadium of Galatasaray S.K. in Seyrantepe, is currently under construction. The southward extension between the Şişhane station and the Yenikapı Seaport, which will pass through the Golden Horn, is also under construction. The date of completion for the latter (southern) extension has been postponed for a few years due to the new archaeological finds during the drilling process, which have brought the necessity to change the routes of the line, as well as the location for the southern and northern entrances of the new metro bridge that will be built on the Golden Horn.
From west to east:[16]
Kadıköy-Kaynarca Metro; (February, 2011, up to Kartal[17])
1. Kadıköy (under construction)
2. İbrahimağa (under construction)
3. Acıbadem (under construction)
4. Ünalan (under construction)
5. Göztepe (under construction)
6. Yenisahra (under construction)
7. Kozyatağı (under construction)
8. Bostancı (under construction)
9. Küçükyalı (under construction)
10. Altayçeşme (under construction)
11. Maltepe (under construction)
12. Gülsuyu (under construction)
13. Cevizli (under construction)
14. Hastane (under construction)
15. Soğanlık (under construction)
16. Kartal (under construction)
17. Yakacık (under construction)
18. Pendik (under construction)
19. Kaynarca (under construction)
The first Istanbul metro rolling stocks which entered service on September 16, 2000, on the Taksim - 4. Levent line were built by Alstom. These trains are air conditioned and equipped with LCD screens.
On January 30, 2009, the first 8 trains (each with 4 wagons) built by Eurotem (the Turkish factory of Hyundai Rotem) entered service.[18] Eurotem will build a total of 92 new wagons for the M2 line, at a total cost of $127 million.[19][20] These trains are also air conditioned and equipped with LCD screens, as well as dynamic digital maps showing the location and direction of the train.[20]
In September 2009, CAF signed a contract to supply 144 units for the Istanbul metro, amounting to 1.156.159 euros. These metro units, each consisting of 4 cars, with a total length per unit of 90 meters and a maximum transport capacity of 1300 passengers.[21]
The line is fully underground. All stations are on the bus lines as well.
There is a possibility to interchange in Taksim with the Taksim-Kabataş funicular Line and the nostalgic tram line on İstiklal Avenue.
When the project will be completed, there will be an interchange at the Yenikapı İDO Ferry Port; from where it is possible to take the high-speed catamaran Seabus for going to Bursa, Bandırma or Yalova; as well as the other Seabus ports in İstanbul such as Bostancı, Kadıköy, Bakırköy, and Kabataş.
There is a flat fare - 2.00 TL, paid in tokens (which are also valid on the funicular, modern tram, LRT, buses and trans-Bosporus ferry boats.) Akbil tickets/cards are also valid. This is the most popular method for long distance travelling. The Akbil ticket is valid in all metros, trams, light rails, funiculars, ferry boats & buses. Ferryboat and bus fares are not flat, so the price of this transfer ticket also varies depending on the distance to be covered in the bus or ferryboat. This ticket is very useful because it costs less (buying metro, tram, light rail, funicular, ferryboat and bus tickets separately costs more.) It also helps to avoid long queues at the light rail and ferryboat stations.
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