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Yüksek Hızlı Tren or YHT (English: High Speed Train) is a high-speed rail service in Turkey, operated by TCDD Taşımacılık, and is the railway's premier intercity train service. As of 2022, the network spans 1,385 km (860.6 mi) and services major cities like Istanbul, Ankara, Eskişehir, İzmit and Konya. Expansion of the system is underway and the network is expected to reach Sivas, Edirne, Afyonkarahisar, Adana and İzmir in the 2020s.

Yüksek Hızlı Tren
An eastbound YHT train (TCDD HT80000) in Ankara
Overview
Service type	High-speed rail
Status	Operating
Locale	Northwest, Central Anatolia
Predecessor	Mavi Tren Başkent Ekspresi Anadolu Ekspresi Meram Ekspresi Ankara Express Cumhuriyet Ekspresi
First service	13 March 2009
Current operator(s)	TCDD Taşımacılık
Former operator(s)	Turkish State Railways
Ridership	8.3 million (2019)[1]
Route
Termini	Ankara Istanbul or Karaman
Distance travelled	1,385 km (860.6 mi)
Average journey time	1 hour, 50 minutes[2]
Service frequency	12x Daily (Ankara-Eskişehir) 9x Daily (Ankara-Istanbul) 5x Daily (Ankara-Konya) 2x Daily (Ankara-Karaman) 4x Daily (Istanbul-Konya) 1x Daily (Istanbul-Karaman)
On-board services
Class(es)	First, business and economy class
Disabled access	Fully accessible
Catering facilities	On-board café, and at-seat meals (depending on the route)
Entertainment facilities	On-board television with feature films
Baggage facilities	Checked baggage available at selected stations
Technical
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC
Operating speed	300 km/h (186 mph) maximum[3]
Track owner(s)	Turkish State Railways
Route map Legend Station Dist.(km) Dist.(km) Station Sivas (2022) 405 Sorgun (2022) Yozgat (2022) 292 Kayseri (2023) Yerköy (2022) 153 Balışeyh (2022) 114 Kırıkkale (2022) 74 Kayaş 12 Ankara 0 Eryaman 21 25 Sincan (2009-18) [lower-alpha 1] Polatlı 90 99 Polatlı junction 112 Yenice junction Eskişehir 246 312 Konya 351 Çumra 406 Demiryurt [lower-alpha 2] 414 Karaman Afyon (2022) Bozüyük 296 Bilecik 330 Uşak (2023) Osmaneli junction Eşme (2023) Arifiye 494 Yenişehir (2023) İzmit 470 Bursa (2023) Bandırma Şehir (2023) Gebze 517 Salihli (2023) Turgutlu (2023) S. Gökçen Airport Manisa (2023) Pendik 537 Menemen (2023) Bostancı 552 Çiğli [lower-alpha 3] Söğütlüçeşme 560 İzmir (2023) YSS Bridge Marmaray Tunnel Bakırköy 580 Ist. Airport Halkalı 594

High-speed rail in Turkey was originally planned to be built as early as 1975, but it wasn't until 2003 when the construction of the Ankara-Istanbul high-speed railway began. The first section was completed in 2007, between Eskişehir and Esenkent with passenger operations beginning on 13 March 2009 between Eskişehir and Ankara. On 23 August 2011, the Turkish State Railways inaugurated its second high-speed railway to Konya and on 25 July 2014, the railway was opened to Istanbul.[4] The State Railways have integrated the YHT network with other projects done in major urban areas. In Ankara, the route was expanded from three tracks to five tracks to allow for frequent Başkentray commuter rail service, along with a new high-speed rail concourse at Ankara station. In Istanbul, YHT trains use the Marmaray Tunnel to traverse the Bosphorus strait and reach the European side of the city.

YHT trains run on both dedicated high-speed railways, as well as existing conventional railways that have been upgraded to allow speeds of 200 km/h (120 mph) and 160 km/h (99 mph) respectively. The latest expansion of the network happened on 8 January 2022, with a 102 km (63 mi) expansion from Konya to Karaman, along the upgraded Konya-Yenice railway. The next expansion of the YHT network is expected to be the 406 km (252 mi) long Ankara-Sivas high-speed railway to Sivas, set to open to revenue service within 2022.

History

Origins

Istanbul and Ankara are Turkey's largest two cities, having a combined population over 16,500,000. Transportation between the two cities is high. The Otoyol 4 motorway is a major highway between the two cities, and the Ankara–Istanbul route is the busiest domestic air route in the country. The route between Istanbul and Ankara by rail has been a single-track line, and trains usually were delayed 30 minutes to 2 hours plus the average 7 hours, 30 minutes travel time. Rail transport in Turkey was already at its lowest point, so in 2003 the State Railways and the Turkish Ministry of Transport made an agreement to build a 533 km (331 mi) line between the two cities. The line would be an electrified double trackline. Construction began in 2004 from Esenkent to Eskişehir. The line was completed on 23 April 2007.[5]

Testing

On 28 February 2007 TCDD requested bids for high-speed train sets from other networks to be tested on the completed portion of the high-speed line.

On 30 March 2007 TCDD signed an agreement with Trenitalia of Ferrovie dello Stato to rent an ETR 500 train set for 4 months.[5][6]

The first run was from Haydarpaşa Terminal in Istanbul to the Central Station in Ankara, using the completed portion of the high-speed line between Hasanbey and Esenkent.

On 14 September 2007 the ETR 500 Y2 set a speed record in Turkey, reaching 303 km/h (188.3 mph).[7] This test received extensive media coverage in Turkey.

On 20 November 2007 the first TCDD HT65000 high-speed train sets purchased from CAF of Spain entered Turkey from the Kapıkule border station in Edirne,[8] and tests were subsequently made with these trains prior to the commencement of services on 13 March 2009.

In 2010 one of the YHT trains was converted into a test train in order to test and measure the new lines.[9] The Transportation Ministry spent 14 million TL (around 7 million Euros at that time) for the installation of testing and measuring equipment on the train, which it named – because it is a tradition to give a name to test trains – as "Piri Reis" after the renowned Turkish admiral and cartographer who drew some of the most accurate and detailed maps of the Mediterranean Sea and the Americas in the early 16th century.[9]

Naming

TCDD requested bids for the name of the high-speed service. Out of over 100 entries, the ones with the highest votes were: Türk Yıldızı (Turkish Star), Turkuaz (Turquoise), Yüksek Hızlı Tren (High Speed Train), Çelik Kanat (Steel Wing) and Yıldırım (Lightning). TCDD chose Yüksek Hızlı Tren to be the name of the service.[10]

Opening

On 13 March 2009 the inaugural ceremony took place in Ankara; attended by President Abdullah Gül, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Minister of Transport Binali Yıldırım, who started the first phase of the YHT service between Ankara and Eskişehir.

Ridership

Ridership

Year	million riders	±% p.a.
2011	2.56	—
2012	3.35	+30.86%
2013	4.21	+25.67%
2014	5.09	+20.90%
2015	5.69	+11.79%
2016	5.9	+3.69%
2017	7.1	+20.34%
2018	8.1	+14.08%
2019	8.3	+2.47%
Source: [11][12][1]

Until 2015, ridership had grown at the expense of TCDD's regular train services and has not dented air traffic demand. Total TCDD services incl. HSR remain flat.[11] Traffic was affected since 2012 all services to Istanbul were suspended. A sharp increase in ridership occurred after extra high speed trains started operation. A further increase in 2018 and 2019 is expected with new trainsets becoming operational and the opening of the Istanbul terminals Halkali and Haydarpasa.[12]^{[needs update]}

Lines in operation

Line	Section	Stations	Length		Top speed	Opened	Rolling stock
			km	mi
Ankara-Istanbul high-speed railway	Ankara-Eskişehir	Ankara, Eryaman YHT, Polatlı YHT, Eskişehir	245	152	250 km/h (160 mph)	13 March 2009	HT65000, HT80000
	Eskişehir-Pendik	Eskişehir, Bozüyük YHT, Bilecik YHT, Arifiye, İzmit, Gebze, Pendik	263	163	250 km/h (160 mph)	25 July 2014
	Pendik-Söğütlüçeşme (Istanbul)	Pendik, Bostancı, Söğütlüçeşme	25	16	120 km/h (75 mph)	12 March 2019
Polatlı-Konya high-speed railway	Polatlı-Konya	Selçuklu YHT, Konya	211	131	250 km/h (160 mph)	23 August 2011
Konya-Karaman higher-speed railway	Konya-Karaman	Konya, Karaman	102.2	63.5	200 km/h (120 mph)	8 January 2022

Ankara-Eskişehir

Ankara to Eskişehir service was the first YHT and high-speed rail route in Turkey, entering service on 13 March 2009. The route has the most frequent train service of the whole YHT network, with 13 daily trains in each direction, 8 of which continue to Istanbul, while only 5 daily trains operate just between the two cities. The average journey time is 1 hour and 29 minutes.

Ankara-Istanbul

Before the YHT came into operation, average journey time between İstanbul and Ankara was 7 hours and 30 minutes. By transferring from the YHT to intercity trains at Eskişehir, average journey time between İstanbul and Ankara has fallen to 5 hours and 30 minutes.[13] After the completion of the second phase of the Ankara-Istanbul high-speed railway (Eskişehir-Istanbul) in 2013, some journeys between Ankara and Eskişehir were extended to Istanbul and YHT started running on the Ankara-Istanbul (Pendik) route on 26 July 2014. The journey is now reduced to as little as 3 hours 49 minutes.[2]

Ankara-Karaman

The route was put into service on 23 August 2011 on the second high-speed railway line being constructed in Turkey. With its inauguration, the journey time between these two cities hugely decreased (mainly because of the absence of direct railway link between the cities).

Istanbul-Karaman

The line was put into service on 17 December 2021. It stops at every stations on its route in which YHT service in present. The average journey time is about 4 hours and 17 minutes.

Lines under construction

Turkey's high-speed rail network is expanding, with three more high-speed railways under construction and several more planned. The Turkish State Railways plans to increase its network of high-speed rail to 3,500 km (2,200 mi) by 2023.

Line	Connected cities/stations	Year of inauguration	Operational top speed	Type of trains
Ankara-Sivas high-speed railway	Kayaş · Kırıkkale · Yerköy · Yozgat · Sorgun · Sivas	December 2022	140 km/h and 250 km/h	TCDD HT80000
Polatlı-Izmir high-speed railway	Emirdağ · Afyon · Uşak · Salihli · Tugutlu	2021 (expected)	250 km/h	HT65000, TCDD HT80000
Bilecik - Bandırma high-speed railway	Yenişehir · Bursa	2012-2023	250 km/h	HT65000, TCDD HT80000
	Bandırma	2020-2023	250 km/h	HT65000, TCDD HT80000
Istanbul–Kapıkule railway	Çerkezköy railway station · Kapıkule railway station · Svilengrad railway station	2019-2022	250 km/h	HT65000, TCDD HT80000
Ankara–Kayseri railway		2022-2025	250 km/h	HT65000, TCDD HT80000

Ankara-Sivas

Ankara to Sivas high-speed rail service is expected to begin operation in mid-2020. The 467 km (290 mi) route will reduce travel time between the two cities from 9 hours and 30 minutes to 2 hours and 50 minutes. The railway will use a straighter route to Sivas, through Yozgat, bypassing Kayseri. Direct service from Istanbul to Sivas is also planned upon opening with an expected journey time of around 5 hours.

Sivas–Kars line

An extension eastwards to Kars from the Ankara – Sivas line is planned (a feasibility study done in 2006[14]), passing through Erzincan and Erzurum.[15] The line is expected to be built in three phases. It will be electrified and double-tracked based on the 250 km/h standard.[16]

Sivas–Erzincan line construction will start in 2018.

Ankara-Afyon-İzmir

Ankara to İzmir high-speed rail service has been talked about since construction of the Ankara-Istanbul high-speed railway began. The 570 km (350 mi) long route will reduce travel time between the two cities from around 13 hours to 3 hours and 30 minutes. The route will diverge off the Polatlı-Konya high-speed railway just south of Polatlı junction and head west, through Afyonkarahisar. The railway will connect to the İzmir-Afyon railway at Manisa and continue into İzmir together with other trains. A second route into İzmir though Kemalpaşa is also planned. This route would diverge off the railway west of Turgutlu and enter İzmir from the east. The line would run underground, parallel with the Halkapınar—Otogar Line of the İzmir Metro, connecting to the existing railway at Halkapınar in the city center.

Bilecik–Bursa-Bandırma high-speed line

A new line between Bursa and Bilecik Osmaneli is planned to connect with the Ankara–Istanbul high-speed line; contracts were awarded in 2011 and construction is expected to start in 2012. The line is expected to open in 2023, and would be capable of 250 km/h operation.[17] The project was revised and extended to Bandırma in summer 2020. The total length of revised line is 201 km.

İstanbul–Edirne–Kapıkule–Svilengrad (Bulgaria) high-speed line

The Ankara to Istanbul high-speed line is to be extended 230 km from Halkalı (a western suburb of Istanbul) all the way to Turkey's borders with Bulgaria and Greece at the vicinity of Kapıkule in the Edirne Province. ^{[citation needed]} Travel times will be reduced from 5 hours to 1 hour assuming non-stop journey between Istanbul terminus and the border post.

Construction began in 2019 and is expected to be finished by 2022.[18]

One-third of the budgeted investment has been done and is planned to be completed by 2020.

For high-speed trains, TCDD has a budget of more than 1  billion TL for 2014.[19]

According to the official (budgeted) and unofficial (announced) plans, 45 of 81 provincial seats will be connected by high-speed services in the long term.[20]

Lines under planning

Antalya–Konya–Kayseri high-speed line

This line is planned as a section of the Ankara–Antalya high-speed line. The line will used for Ankara–Antalya high-speed line.^{[citation needed]}

Eskişehir-Afyon-Antalya high-speed line

Ordu-Samsun-Çorum-Kırıkkale-Ankara high-speed line

Related infrastructure projects

The Marmaray project, which consists of a rail transport network around Istanbul and the world's deepest immersed tube railway tunnel under the Bosphorus strait, is also under construction. The Marmaray tunnel will connect the railway lines on the European and Asian parts of Istanbul and Turkey. In 2013 the Marmaray tunnel was opened and passenger transportation is started partially in 13.5 km of total 76.5 km.[21] The rest was expected to be completed by 2015, but it now looks like this will not happen until some time in 2016. The project connecting the European and Asian suburban railway lines, will also connect the Thracian and Anatolian high-speed railway lines in Turkey via the world's deepest immersed-tube railway tunnel across the Bosphorus strait.[22]

A new high-speed rail terminus station is to be built in Ankara (2009–2010), which is to be funded as a public–private partnership, using the Build-Operate-Transfer model. Additionally, new stations are to be constructed in İstanbul, Izmir, Edirne, Trabzon, Erzurum, Erzincan, Sivas, Kayseri, Antalya, Afyon and Polatlı.[23] Furthermore, an additional project called Başkentray is also underway which consist of the renewal of railways in the urban section of Ankara.

Service and Operation

Speed limitations

The YHT operates at a maximum speed of 300 km/h (186 mph)[3][24] on high-speed tracks. But the YHT also runs on non-high-speed and renewed tracks like the Köseköy-Gebze section of the Ankara–Istanbul high-speed railway where its top speed is 160 km/h (99 mph). Naturally, some speed restrictions also apply in urban sections while accessing the central station, especially in Ankara and Istanbul thus increasing journey times. The speed on these sections is expected to increase once renewal projects in urban areas (like Başkentray and second phase of Marmaray) are completed.

Staff, operation and security

On YHT service, there is usually one train engineer (two on some trains), a train manager (absent in some trips), two train attendants and a café car attendant. Business-class passengers are served meals at their seats if they applied for while buying their tickets. When accessing the trains, passengers must pass a security check like in airports. Maintenance of the sets is done at the Eryaman Yard in Ankara.

Trains

Currently, there are several series of high-speed trains that run the YHT service:

• TCDD HT65000, manufactured by CAF
• TCDD HT80000, manufactured by Siemens, marketed globally under the brand Siemens Velaro. Turkey also signed contract for ten more Velaro trains. With this contract, the Turkish Velaro fleet will grow to 17 trains.[25]

Every set has railroad cars with cabins in the front and rear car, cars for economy class passengers and car(s) for first class passengers. Additionally, some HT80000 sets have business class cabins with 4 seats. The seating arrangements are 3 seats in a row (1 on one side, 2 on the other side) in first class and 4 seats in a row (2 on each side) in economy class. Automatic sliding doors provide passage between cars. Baggage may be stowed in the overhead compartments above the seats, or underneath the seats. Wi-Fi service is available with power inputs for laptops in first and business classes and all sets are wheelchair-accessible (with places in economy class only). In economy class, seats are fabric-coated and have audio connectors and foldable tables. In first class, there are leather-coated seats and a visual and audio broadcasting system that can broadcast at least 4 hours on 4 different channels.

See also

• TGV
• AVE
• Intercity Express
• Le Frecce
• High-speed rail in Turkey
• List of high-speed railway lines

External links

• TCDD Official Site (In Turkish)
• TCDD English Site

Notes

References

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