Public transport in Istanbul

Mecidiyeköy M7 station of the Istanbul Metro

The first line (M1) began service on 3 September 1989 between Aksaray and Kocatepe. The line was further developed step-by-step and reached Atatürk Airport on 20 December 2002. The line has 18 stations and is 19.6 kilometres (12.2 mi) long. As of 2012, daily ridership was 416 journey and 210,000 passengers.[5] Even if it's numbered as the first line, actually the line is a LRT system with many common characteristics with the T4 line, including the rolling stock. Though they are categorized differently by the operator.

The construction of the underground railway in Istanbul began in 1992. The first line (M2) between Taksim and 4th Levent went into service on September 16, 2000. This line is 8.5 km long and has 6 stations, which all look similar but are in different colours.

A northern extension from 4th Levent to Atatürk Oto Sanayi station in Maslak (ITÜ/Ayazağa) entered service in 2009, as well as a southern extension from[6] Taksim to Şişhane station in Beyoğlu, near the northern entrance of Tünel. The last northern extension for the short term, Hacı Osman was opened in 2011. The southern extension of M2 from Şişhane to Yenikapı over the new Golden Horn Bridge was opened in 2013 permitting the line to reach the Yenikapı Transfer Center. Finally the Airport (M1A) and Bağcılar (M1B) lines' eastern terminus was extended from Aksaray to this transfer center in 2014.

The M3 line runs from Kirazlı station on the M1 line to the northern Başakşehir district. It opened on 14 June 2013. A northern extension to Kayaşehir Merkez was opened on 8 April 2023 and a southern extension to Bakırköy IDO station is still under construction.[7]

M6 is a line branching off the M2 from the Levent station running east towards Hisarüstü and Boğaziçi University. It opened on 19 April 2015.[8]

On the Asian side, 26.5 km (16.5 mi) long M4 line opened on 17 August 2012 up to Kartal. The line will have a total of 25 stations when the third section as far as Tuzla opens. A connection to Sabiha Gökçen Airport is under construction.

There is also M5, which links Üsküdar, Ümraniye and Çekmeköy. A further extension to the Sancaktepe and the Sultanbeyli districts is under construction.

Currently there are 124 Hyundai-Rotem (M2) and 120 CAF[9] (M4) trains in service, with a trip along the entire line taking 27 (M2) and 52 (M4) minutes.

All lines are operated by Metro Istanbul (the new name of Istanbul Ulaşım A.Ş.) which belongs to the Municipality of Istanbul.[10]

Nostalgic tram and modern tram systems of İstanbul

Istanbul inaugurated horse trams in 1872 and these served the people of Istanbul until 1912. Following this date, electric trams were put in place and they were the main means for urban public transport until 1966. Many routes were built step by step, and it reached their most widespread network in 1956 with 108 million passengers in 270 shuttles in 56 lines. Tramcars were not modernized for many decades, and some of the 1911 electric cars were still running in the 1960s. At that time modern buses provided faster and smoother journeys. Because of those negative issues, tram system closed in mid-1960s.

From the early 1970s, traffic congestion worsened. By the mid-1980s, Istanbulites realized that the uncontrolled extension of motorization & closure of the tram network had been a mistake. Other cities around the world, e.g. Tunis and Buenos Aires, also understood that error, and like them, Istanbul also planned the return of the tramway.

As an experiment, Istanbul first opened a heritage tram at European side in 1990. Due to increasing popularity, they opened a modern tram system starting in 1992, also at European side. Now, the Asian side has a heritage tram system, whereas the European side has both a heritage tram and a modern tram system.

The modern tram consists of lines T1, T4 and T5, initially operated with 55 low-floor Bombardier Flexity Swift and 32 Alstom Citadis.[11] The line T4 was opened in 2007 between Edirnekapı and Mescid-i Selam. There are 22 stations and length is 15,3 km. Since March 2009, the line works between Topkapı and Mescid-i Selam.[12] Service is operated with LRT vehicles built by SGP in 1989. As of 2019, daily ridership was 446 journeys and 196,000 passengers.[12]

The Yenikapı Transfer Center where transfer between Marmaray and the metro is possible

Starting from June 2013, suburban lines on both sides of the city (Istanbul suburban and Haydarpaşa suburban) were closed for rehabilitation works as well as for their fusion into a single line by the means of an undersea tunnel through the Bosphorus as part of the Marmaray project.

On 12 March 2019, the whole parts of the Marmaray are operational. A further extension to Bahçeşehir via Ispartakule is proposed.

Operated by İETT, the Tünel (1875) in Istanbul was the first underground railway line in continental Europe, and the second subterranean railway line in the world after London's Underground (1863)

Istanbul is served by three underground funicular railways, of very different ages and styles.

The older of these lines is the Tünel. This line is the oldest underground metro line in continental Europe, and the second in the world after London. The Tünel is 573 m long with an altitude difference of 60 m and no intermediate stations between Karaköy and Tünel Square. It has been continuously in service since 1875. It was originally steam-powered with two wooden trains serving parallel tracks. It was modernized in 1971. Today the line is single-track with a passing loop, electrically powered and runs on rubber tyres with rebuilt ex-RATP MP 55 vehicles. A trip takes approximately 1.5 minutes. About 15,000 people use the line each day. Unlike the modern one below which runs at strictly five-minute intervals, this one has a less regular schedule.

Opened in June 2006, a second modern funicular line, the Kabataş-Taksim Funicular, is operated by Ulaşım A.Ş.[13] and connects the Seabus port and tram stop of Kabataş with the metro station at Taksim Square. It is about 600 meters long and climbs approximately 60 meters in 110 seconds.

In October 2022 the newest funicular line the F4 (Istanbul Metro) Boğaziçi Üni./Hisarüstü-Aşiyan funicular line opened and operated by Ulaşım A.Ş. It connects with M6 (İstanbul Metro) line at Boğaziçi University.

Metrobüs BRT in Istanbul

The bus rapid transit (BRT) system in Istanbul is called Metrobüs. The construction of the Metrobüs BRT line began in 2005. The first line runs between Avcılar and Söğütlüçeşme. This line is 41.5 km long and has 35 stations, which are located on Istanbul's Main Highway, called the D 100. It is currently operated with Mercedes Capacity, Mercedes-Benz Citaro, and some Phileas buses.[14] Ridership is 715.000 passengers per day.[15]

An extension to Beylikdüzü opened in 2012.[16]

Metrobüs lines in Istanbul

A Mercedes-Benz Citaro of the İETT with the new livery

The bus fleet has a total of 4,012[17][18] vehicles built by MAN, Ikarus, Mercedes-Benz, BMC,[19] Phileas, Otokar,[18] Temsa[18] and Güleryüz.[18] In 2012 the daily ridership was 3,621,908[15] passengers, representing 30% of the city's total daily transportation.[20]

Since 1985, privately owned ÖHO (Özel Halk Otobüsü - Private Public Bus) buses have been allowed to operate under the authority of İETT. There are 2,157 private owned public buses, including 144 double-deckers.[21] There are 783 bus lines excluding diversions as of May 21, 2018.[22] Many routes have diversions running one roundtrip a day on average, which usually feed less developed suburbs around frequent routes. Some routes also provide short turning services at peak hours for crowded stops. Those diversions are listed under the same headsign reference as main route. Buses running diversion routes do not display route numbers, spelling out the route on the headsign in detail instead. In 2010, the municipality decided to found a new company called Otobüs A.Ş. (Bus Inc.) in order to more quickly replace old vehicles.[23] Otobüs A.Ş. had a fleet of 544 vehicles as of December 2012.[18] The vehicles are fully low floor and certified to Euro 5 standards. In 2014, IETT carried 1.31 billion ticketed passengers, a record for a Turkish transport system.[24] İETT is currently trialling outsourcing the drivers and maintenance into private bus company Akkurtlar. Outsourced drivers can be distinguished by their uniforms.

Kaptan Gündüz Aybay ferry on the Bosphorus

Ferryboats sail on 15 lines serving 27 seaports on the shores of Bosphorus and Sea of Marmara. The 20 older ferryboats carry 61 million passengers yearly. In the 1980s 150 million people were transported.

Today, there are 3 types of ferry in İstanbul; Sea Busses (İDO), Vapur's[25] (traditional name for commuter ferries) and private motorboats.

The first steam ferries appeared on the Bosphorus in 1837 and were operated by private sector companies. On 1 January 1851, the Şirket-i Hayriye (literally “The Goodwill Company”, as the Istanbul Ferry Company was originally called) was established by the Ottoman state. The Şirket-i Hayriye continued to operate the city's landmark commuter ferries until the early years of the Republican period, when they went under the direction of Türkiye Denizcilik İşletmeleri (“Turkish State Maritime Lines”). Since March 2006, Istanbul's traditional commuter ferries have been operated by municipality. In 2017, the municipality established a system for musicians to play live music for passengers in the lower salons of most ferry lines.

The current design of the Istanbul ferries, as we know them today, was largely created by the Fairfield Shipbuilders of Glasgow, Scotland, which also built the largest amount of Istanbul ferries since 1851. The companies which designed and built the traditional commuter ferries of Istanbul include the White Shipbuilders of East Cowes, England (models of 1854–1860); the M. Wigram Shipbuilders of London, England (models of 1863–1869); Maudslay & Sons of London, England (models of 1870–1872); R. & H. Green Shipbuilders of London, England (models of 1872-1890 and 1894–1896); J. W. Thames of London, England (models of 1890–1893); Napier, Shanks & Bell of Glasgow, Scotland (models of 1893–1894); Fairfield Shipbuilders of Glasgow, Scotland (models of 1903–1906, 1910–1911, 1914–1929, and 1938–1962); Armstrong Shipbuilders in Newcastle and Glasgow, United Kingdom (models of 1905–1907); Atl. & Chantiers de France in Dunkerque, France (models of 1907–1911); Hawthorn Leslie and Company in Newcastle, England (models of 1911); Kinderdijk L. Smith & Zoon Ltd, Holland (models of 1951); Cantieri Navali di Taranto SPA, Taranto, Italy (models of 1952); and Hasköy, Camialtı, and İstinye Shipyards in Istanbul (models of 1929-1938 and 1962–1989).

A Seabus on the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul

On 16 April 1987 the Municipality of Istanbul established a company to provide fast sea transport with catamaran-type seabuses. With the first ten vessels purchased from Norway, modernization of sea transportation was achieved. Today, the company İDO serves 29 terminals with a fleet of 28 catamarans, including six fast car ferries.

Maçka Gondola tandem cabins at Maçka Terminal.

There is a short gondola lift line above the Democracy Park in the valley between Taksim and Maçka, the Maçka Gondola (Turkish: Maçka-Taşkışla Teleferiği), built in 1993. It connects the hotels Hilton Istanbul Bosphorus on one side with Parksa Hilton and Swissotel The Bosphorus on the other side. The cable line is 333 m (1,093 ft) long and transports in two cabins with six seats each around 1,000 passengers daily. The trip takes three minutes.

A second aerial lift line, the Eyüp Gondola (Turkish: Eyüp-Piyerloti Teleferiği) was opened in 2005 between the historical district of Eyüp and the Pierre Loti Hill. The gondola lift, built by the Italian Leitner Ropeways Co. of Leitner Group was the most expensive cable car line in Turkey costing 5 million Euros.

These official websites include timetables and maps Buses & Funicular

• Municipal Bus Transport Authority of Istanbul IETT

Trains & Trams

• Metro Istanbul (operator of İstanbul's modern rail systems)
• Marmaray (contains general information about the line/project including timetables)

Ferry Services

• İDO İstanbul Sea Ferries (catamaran)
• Şehir Hatları (operator of traditional ferries)

• http://www.istanbulmetromap.com Metrobus / Metro / Tramway

• Timeline of the Istanbul (Turkey) Rail Transit Network - CityRailTransit.com
• The Istanbul metro - UrbanRail.net
• Public Transport by Rail in Turkish Cities - Rail Turkey