The monorail is a transportation system in which the train travels over a single rail, usually on elevated track, as will be the case in this project. The rail network will be constructed in areas with narrow streets and heavy traffic. Nine districts have been chosen for the monorail network thus far.

The municipality plans to build five lines encompassing 34 kilometers of rail on the European side and 21 kilometers of rail over four different lines on the Asian side.

The first line will be established in İstanbul's Beyoğlu district between Şişhane and Okmeydanı. The line will begin from the Şişhane subway station and will extend to the Cemal Kamacı Sports Complex in Okmeydanı via Kulaksız. This first leg of the project, which is included in the municipality's 2008 investment program, is expected to cost YTL 300 million and to be completed in 2010. Construction is said to run YTL 25 million per kilometer of rail.

An underground parking structure will also be built below the park located next to the Cemal Kamacı Sports Complex, enabling İstanbulites to "park and ride."

The municipality is still deciding whether or not to combine the monorail with the Şişli subway station. With this project, officials want to prevent more cars from entering areas that already see a high number of vehicles.

The idea of an İstanbul monorail was first brought on the agenda in the early 2000s, among other projects proposed for faster, cheaper and more efficient means of transportation in the city. Originally, the plan was to construct the monorail on a route from Beşiktaş-Etiler-Boğaziçi University and from the Bakırköy coast to İncirli. Now the plan also includes construction of the following lines: Beşiktaş-Zincirlikuyu, Üsküdar-Altunizade, Kadıköy-Koşuyolu, Okmeydanı-Mecidiyeköy, Çubuklu-Anadolu Hisarı, Zincirlikuyu-Boğaziçi, Kartal coast-Otoban, Ayazağa-İstinye and Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) mass housing-Ümraniye Tepeüstü.

Today's Zaman

Güncelleme Tarihi: 13 Mart 2008, 10:09