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Akçaray

Akçaray
Overview
OwnerKocaeli Metropolitan Municipality
LocaleIzmit
Transit typeLight Rail
Number of lines2
Number of stations16
Daily ridership26,400
Websitehttps://www.ulasimpark.com.tr/tramway
Operation
Operation will startJune 17, 2017
Operator(s)Ulaşım Park A.Ş.
Number of vehicles29
Train length33 m
Technical
System length16.2
Track gauge1435 mm

Akçaray is the tramway line serving in İzmit, which is a city in the province of Kocaeli, Turkey with a population of 367,990. Izmit and Kocaeli are part of Turkey's industrial heartland situation to the east of Istanbul and on the north coast of the Marmara Sea. It has the distinction of being the first and currently the only tramway line in the district of Kocaeli and one of two mass transit lines with the construction of the Gebze Metro.[1]

Akçaray while moving

History

The first tender for the preparation of Akçaray implementation projects was held in January 2014.[1] In the following days, a public vote on the name and color of the tramway line was announced by the Kocaeli Metropolitan and Izmit Municipalities. A tramway wagon was brought to the Anıtpark Square in İzmit and showcased by drawing electricity with a cable.[2]

The tender for the construction of the line was held on May 20, 2015.[1] The general contracting firm Gülermak won the tender for 113 million 990 thousand TL.[3] The groundbreaking ceremony of the project took place on October 19, 2015. Construction work took place between October 2015 and June 2017 when the line opened for public use. During the design phase of the line, controversy arose around plans to repurpose an old railway right of way that had been converted into a pedestrian path into one for the new tramway route.[4]

First phase

The line was put into service with a ceremony on June 17, 2017, with service running every 20 minutes, and on 11 stations spanning the 14.8 km (9.2 mi) line between Otogar and Sekapark. At the opening ceremony, Ministry of National Defense (Turkey) Fikri Işık announced that the line would be free of charge until July 15, 2017.[5] Headways were reduced to every 15 minutes, 4 days after the line's opening. The frequency of trains was arranged to be between 5 and 15 minutes (depending on the hours of the day) with the start of the school term in September.

Second phase

The first 4 stations of the Sekapark to Plajyolu section, the second phase of the line, were put into service on February 9, 2019.[6] In November 2019, 4 more stations were added to the line and extended to Plajyolu. The tender for the extension line to Kuruçeşme was held in 2020.[7] The extension to Kuruçeşme was opened on April 20, 2023.

After the opening of the second stage of the line, it was announced that a free transfer agreement was signed with the cooperatives in the region for the 4 lines in the Alikahya neighborhood towards the Otogar direction.[8]

The 33-metre (108 ft)-long vehicles in service have a total capacity of 290 passengers, including 50 seats and 240 standing. The line, which was opened in June 2017, carried 23 million passengers between the date of its opening and November 2019.

Stations

Number Station Opening Date Notes
1 Otogar June 17, 2017 Izmit Coach Station
2 Yahyakaptan June 17, 2017 Arastapark Mall
3 Yenişehir June 17, 2017
4 Mehmet Ali Paşa June 17, 2017
5 Doğu Kışla June 17, 2017 East Barracks Youth Park
6 Millî İrade Meydanı June 17, 2017 Izmit National Square, İzmit Monument Park
7 Fuar June 17, 2017 Kocaeli Fair
8 Yeni Cuma June 17, 2017 Sabanci Cultural Center, Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Offices
9 Fevziye June 17, 2017
10 Gar June 17, 2017 İzmit Train Station
11 Sekapark June 17, 2017 Seka Park, SEKA Paper Museum
12 Seka Devlet Hastanesi February 9, 2019 İzmit Seka State Hospital
13 Kongre Merkezi February 9, 2019 Kocaeli Congress Center
14 Eğitim Kampüsü February 9, 2019 Izmit High School
15 Plajyolu February 9, 2019
16 Kuruçeşme April 20, 2023

References

  1. ^ a b c "Kocaeli Büyükşehir Belediyesi - Sayfa Bulunamadı". www.kocaeli.bel.tr. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  2. ^ "TRAMVAY PROJESİ İÇİN HALK OYLAMASI DEVAM EDİYOR". Milliyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  3. ^ IHA. "Tramvay Hattı İhalesi Sonuçlandı". www.hurriyet.com.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  4. ^ Haber, Ray (2014-11-13). "İzmit Tramvay Hattı Yürüyüş Yolu'ndan Geçecekse Yapılmasın". RayHaber | RaillyNews (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  5. ^ "Bakan müjdeyi verdi.. Akçaray 15 Temmuz'a kadar ücretsiz". Özgür Kocaeli Gazetesi (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  6. ^ "Sekapark-Plajyolu tramvay hattı hizmete girdi". Özgür Kocaeli Gazetesi (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  7. ^ "Yeni tramvay hattının deneme sürüşünü Başkan Büyükakın yaptı". Yeni tramvay hattının deneme sürüşünü Başkan Büyükakın yaptı (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  8. ^ "Ulaşımda ücretsiz aktarma dönemi başladı". Özgür Kocaeli Gazetesi (in Turkish). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
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