Konya Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ugur Ibrahim Altay, together with members of the press, examined the rail system investments that will be brought to the city by the Metropolitan Municipality.
Mayor Altay first traveled from Meram Station to Kayacık Station by railbus with members of the press to inspect the KONYRAY Suburban Line.
In a statement to the press, Mayor Altay emphasized that they are implementing very important transportation projects for Konya, saying, "The main issue for all big cities is traffic. Designing traffic based on vehicles creates even bigger problems in the future. That's why, just like in the rest of the world, we are putting in a lot of effort in this area. First, we are strengthening the public transportation system, and secondly, we are working on bike lanes and other initiatives to make bicycle transportation an alternative to traffic in the city."
Mayor Altay, noting that the KONYARAY Project, one of their most important public transportation initiatives, consists of three stages, stated that they are currently working intensively on the first stage. He shared that construction work on the 19.7-kilometer section from Meram Station to the Kayacık Logistics Center has reached 60% completion. Mayor Altay continued his remarks as follows:
"We are running a joint project here with the Republic of Turkey State Railways (TCDD), the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, and Konya Metropolitan Municipality. While infrastructure works and relocations are carried out by KOSKİ and other infrastructure agencies, the infrastructure, track laying, and signaling are managed by TCDD. After the work is completed, the vehicles will be provided by our municipality, and in the first stage, we will add an additional track alongside the existing one, increasing our three tracks to four, creating a system. This way, when you board at Meram Station, you will be able to travel first to Kayacık Logistics Center, then to Pınarbaşı, and further to the Organized Industrial Zone."
Mayor Altay, pointing out that KONYARAY covers almost 50 kilometers of track, said, "Currently, the rail system in Konya spans 27 kilometers. Therefore, even the projects we have started and are continuing this year are twice the size of the entire rail system built in Konya's history. God willing, we will work tirelessly to increase Konya’s share of public transportation and provide our citizens with fast, safe, and comfortable transportation. I thank all my colleagues for their efforts. I also want to thank you for your dedication in conveying these matters to the people of Konya."
Mayor Altay then conducted inspections on the route of the Barış Caddesi Rail System Line, which will consist of 17 kilometers and 23 stations, to be introduced to the city by the Konya Metropolitan Municipality.
Noting that the consultancy tender for this line had been completed and the project is being carried out with the World Bank, Mayor Altay said:
"This is an approximately 100 million euro project. With this, we will extend the rail system to the Yazır area, Beyhekim Hospital, Barış Caddesi, and the New Stadium. God willing, we plan to start construction here this year. The construction period will be two years, and this will be completed by 2027. We aim to use our previous trams here because new trams are very expensive. We have already started the restoration of our existing trams. This way, we are introducing a new rail system line to Konya. The Ardıçlı Housing Complex and Beyhekim Hospital will also be connected to the rail system. This will be a new alternative tram line route for Konya. We aim to begin construction this year."
Finally, Mayor Altay conducted inspections on the ongoing construction of the City Hospital-New Industrial Tram Line by the Konya Metropolitan Municipality and provided the press with updates on the current status of the line.
Altay said, "As part of our joint work with the Metropolitan Municipality and the Ministry of Transport, we are currently continuing our efforts on the 11.1-kilometer stretch from the City Hospital to the New Industrial area. We have completed the track laying for about 2 kilometers, and we will continue progressively to complete the 11.1 kilometers along Aslım Street. Starting from Aslım Street, the 10-kilometer section, including the Tümosan Junction, Aksaray Junction, Dr. Sadık Ahmet Street, Halil Ürün Street, and the New Stadium area, will be tendered by the Ministry of Transport's Directorate General of Infrastructure Investments (AYGM). This way, we will have a new line extending from the stadium to Alaaddin. We plan to launch this 21.1-kilometer line in 2027. With KONYARAY, the City Hospital, Stadium, and Barış Caddesi Tramway, we will have introduced approximately 56 kilometers of rail system lines to our city."
Mayor Altay explained that they are also continuing project work on the Fetih Caddesi-Ahmet Özcan Caddesi Tram Line, as well as the metro lines connecting Necmettin Erbakan University-Alaaddin, Alaaddin-Selçuk University, and Konya Technical University. He added, "Our goal is, God willing, to complete or begin work on rail system lines totaling 105 kilometers by the end of this term. This will enable Konya to make significant progress in public transportation. By adding four times the length of the existing rail system, we will connect all hospitals, universities, and the city center with a new rail system line. With an estimated cost of approximately 2 billion liras, the Metropolitan Municipality is continuing the construction of this line. I thank all those involved. God willing, once completed, we will have connected our City Hospital, industrial areas, and stadium to the rail system."
