Turkey gets EIB loan for high speed railway project

ISTANBUL, Dec 15, 2006 (AFP) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) granted Turkey a loan of 850 million euros (1.1 billion dollars) to build the country's first high speed railway between capital Ankara and financial centre Istanbul, the bank said on Friday.

The loan is a key element of the Turkish State Railway's plans to improve connections between Ankara and key areas of economic activity and respond to rising demand for railway services, said an EIB statement received here.

The project involves the construction of a 533-kilometre (330-mile) railway track between the two cities with trains travelling at a speed of 250 kilometers per hour, thus reducing travel time to three hours.

The project will cost 2.6 billion euros and is to become fully operational in 2008.

Turkey has been under pressure to overhaul its decades-old decrepit railway system since a series of fatal train accidents two years ago.

Thirty-seven people were killed in July 2004 when a newly inaugurated express train derailed in northwestern Turkey, and another eight people perished a month later when two trains crashed head-on in the same region.

Also, Ankara-Konya high speed train line is under constraction. The third line will be built between Ankara-Izmir.

3 railway lines to be built with 250km/hr speed! Major investment of $3 billion for Istanbul-Ankara line! That is remarkable. Good luck Turkey :)

How much is being invested in other two lines? What distances are we talking about for the three lines?

and thats the new central station in Ankara

http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/3742/untitled7api8.jpg


Youtube video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esseBFg6aUY

Well done Turkey :)

Finally the first phase has been completed and test drives started one week ago.

http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/2011/ithighjm4.jpg


The first video:
2gMbAB-muCA



Turkey will use 3 types of highspeed trains:

TCDD ordered 2x Italian made ETR 500
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/8610/etr500gr3.jpg

10 Spanish made CAF
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/6572/cafke1.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/18/TCDD_H%C4%B1zl%C4%B1_Tren.png

and Turkish made EUROTEM (Turkish-Korean production)HSR350X
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/7821/hst4il1.jpg

What was completed? The first phase of which line?

Where is the test train running?

Turkey is the first Muslim majority nation to have a high speed train and manufacture its own train..congrats.

Turkey is certainly an inspiration to Malaysia.:)

Thank you for your nice words forrestcat. Well I admired Malaysia for its technology and for Petronas too :D

Btw in order to enlighten Trainman Dave here is a map of the whole project.

Right now the pink and the dark blue line is u/c. (Ankara-Istanbul and Ankara-Konya lines) According to the plan all lines will be completed by 2012. The track you see in the video is the line between Ankara and Istanbul.
http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/images/htharita.jpg

Planned Lines

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/1340/highspeedpo6.jpg (http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/5162/tcddnetworktt3.png)


ANKARA - IZMIR RAILWAY

Between Polatlı - Afyon
0673FK7xaYs

Between Afyon - Izmir
mOchwSLJTZE

Length - 624 km
Min Curve Radius - 3500 m
Project Speed - 250 km/h
Number of Tunnels - 13
Total Tunnel Length - 15355 m
Longest Tunnel - 4450 m
Number of Viaducts - 13
Number of Bridges - 189
Number of Stations - 22




ANKARA - SIVAS RAILWAY

DUP9UcSdwcY

Length - 466 km
Min Curve Radius - 3500 m
Project Speed - 250 km/h
Number of Tunnels - 8
Total Tunnel Length - 9722 m
Longest Tunnel - 2958 m
Number of Viaducts - 6
Number of Bridges - 88
Number of Stations - 14


thanks to System :cheers:

Turkish made EUROTEM (Turkish-Korean production)HSR350X
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/7821/hst4il1.jpg

Looks like a TGV-clone to me.

TGV POS
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/electric/emu/TGV/POS/TGV-POS_4404_1.jpg

TGV clone?apart from having any similarities that all trains should have, i cant see a single clone image on it, and if it was a clone of something that would probably be a japanese train.

TGV clone?apart from having any similarities that all trains should have, i cant see a single clone image on it, and if it was a clone of something that would probably be a japanese train.

Wrong TGV in the photograph. That is the new TGVs. The Korean 350 HST's were, I believe, based the TGV-a trainsets but these have been modified by the Koreans. The heritage is the TGV not the Japanese.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3052/2949537383_4654cf226f.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3042/2417654185_4215991b66_o.jpg

picture taken in 2008 at Ankara yard......

hokomoko, if you notice the other thread everything is together, including the pictures you post. So no need repeat the pictures and divide the thread like this and live the dead thread.

So when can I plan my first holiday to Turkey?

When will these train perform timetabled runs and from where to where?

^^please ask such questions at the other thread instead of at such dead threads?

hopefully one day we will have Thessaloniki - Istanbul HSR. :)

THE HIGHSPEED WORLD WELCOMES A NEW MEMBER TODAY!!!

Yesterday the first journey took place with PM Erdogan and today first passengers can travel between Turkey's capital Ankara and western located industrial city of Eskisehir. The tickets will cost 5 lira(2,5€) in march and after march 40 lira. Also yesterday with the introduction of this new groundbreaking of a new line to eastern Turkey (Sivas) took place which means:

Ankara-Eskisehir completed
Eskisehir - Istanbul u/c
Ankara - Konya u/c
Ankara - Sivas u/c

Here is a current map: The continous line are u/c of which Ankara-Eskisehir is opened since this morning. Istanbul, Konya and Sivas (cities in green boxes) are going to be completed in 2010 and 2011.

The dashed lines to Bursa and Izmir are approved but are still during planing phase right now.

http://i39.tinypic.com/x50jp.jpg


Fresh photos from Ankara-Eskisehir line which opened this morning:

http://img372.imageshack.us/img372/9351/24vt7.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/01.jpg

Highspeed on the left and conventional on the right
http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/02.jpg

on viaduct
http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/03.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/10.jpg

251 km/h
http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/15.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/11.jpg



some videos:
LLhM2rfc460

showing different parts of the line:
SDyCaJtjL4c




And now some construction photos of other lines. Ankara-Konya to be completed in 2010:

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/36.jpghttp://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/37.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/38.jpghttp://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/40.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/19.jpghttp://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/16.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/32.jpghttp://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/34.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/43.jpghttp://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/46.jpg

Nice.
Which train control is used?

:cheers::yes::okay::applause::master:

Excellent!

Congrats Turkey!

Great!! It has been long awaited and now it has happened. In my personal view the new line that will eventually connect Ankara all the way to Istanbul is a neat, pragmatic solution: it cries to high heavens that the 50+ km south of Izmit are kept "in option" for future speed upgrades if the traffic takes off as they hope it will.

Congratulations to our Turkish friends. - But, hey, with a Minister of Transportation by the name of Mr. Yilderim what would one expect but a new generation of very fast trains? :lol:

Who manufactures the cars?

Which train control? Hmm I do not know much about that topic but is there a "euroean" system? If yes, I guess that's what they used.

Right now 10 spanish made CAF are used but the highspeed train factory in Sakarya is completed so Turkish Tuvasas and Korean Rotem will produce the KTX II in Sakarya which has a max. speed of 350 km/h and looks much sexier! :cheers:

Factory in Sakarya:
http://img523.imageshack.us/img523/529/fatihcanfabrikadz8.jpg

Korean KTX II:
http://pds3.egloos.com/pds/200705/29/15/c0016615_08054471.jpg

GO TURKEY !!!!

yay!!!:banana::banana:

Korean KTX II:
http://pds3.egloos.com/pds/200705/29/15/c0016615_08054471.jpg

Interesting train, first time I see. Could be double-deck like the french from which it is inspired obviously...

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/09.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/13.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/11.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/12.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/07.jpg


http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/06.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/05.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/17.jpg

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/03.jpg

:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:

http://content.zaman.com.tr/extentions/haberinfotografi/2009-03-10-tren/img/17.jpg
255km / second???!!!!! Holy crap that's fast! :D

^^

"s" means "saat" in turkish.And "saat" means "hour" in english ;)

Korean KTX II:
http://pds3.egloos.com/pds/200705/29/15/c0016615_08054471.jpg

Is that for real? I thought the KTXII was a push-pull trainset, not an EMU

Which train control?

There is ETCS Level 1 with cab signalisation in use. The contract was won by Alcatel. The signaling activities have been transferred to Thales, which executeted the contract. railwa-technology (http://www.railway-technology.com/projects/ankara-istanbul/)

Turkish High Speed Lines


Current Status

http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/2937/dfdfdfd.jpg

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/8596/ffhhha.jpg

http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/9241/fdsgdg.jpg

http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/2497/iiruir.jpg

nice :cheers:

I hope the new KTX II will built as soon as possible.It makes 100km/h difference between KTX II (350km/h) and CAF Trains (250km/h).High Speed Lines are built for a maximum speed of 350km/h.

Btw. When will be completed the part between Eskisehir to Istanbul ???

High Speed Lines are built for a maximum speed of 350km/h.

International Railway Journal says all 8 of the planned Turkish High Speed Lines are being built for 250 km/h operation.

http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/sb/irj0109/#/20

the record on the existing line is 303 km/h. I think 250 km/h is chosen because of efficienty reasons.

BTW Ankara-Sivas is u/c since last friday :cheers:

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/8596/ffhhha.jpg

Istanbul-Antalya in 4 hours :).So it will be possible to make a short trip to the mediterran sea with train at weekends to relax and forget the big city and business life.

International Railway Journal says all 8 of the planned Turkish High Speed Lines are being built for 250 km/h operation.

http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/sb/irj0109/#/20

Then they are contradicting their own data since it is impossible to cover 350km in 1h 15min running at 250km/h. 430km in 1h 45min is also impossible.

Then they are contradicting their own data since it is impossible to cover 350km in 1h 15min running at 250km/h. 430km in 1h 45min is also impossible.

I agree.

This from Railway Gazette:

New line projects

'The hiatus in railway development has left many of Turkey’s major cities not served by rail, or only accessible from the capital by circuitous routes. Much of the network is single track, and only 27% of route-km is electrified. The ministry has therefore drawn up plans for five double-track electrified lines suitable for 250 km/h, which will open up new routes and cut journey times dramatically. By 2013 it expects to have completed 1 938 km of new line.

As well as the Ankara – Eskisehir line, construction of the next section towards Izmit and Istanbul has commenced with the alignment being constructed from Eskisehir as far as Bozüyük although no track has yet been laid. Construction is also well advanced on a direct line from Ankara to Konya, on which the infrastructure works have largely been completed and tracklaying is getting underway. This diverges from the Eskisehir line at Polatli, west of the capital, and runs almost due south to meet the line from Afyon at Sarayönü, north of Konya. This route is expected to see trains running by the end of 2010.

Work has also started on the first section of a new line from Ankara to Sivas via Yozgat, which will shorten the distance between the two cities by 131 km, and reduce the journey time from 11 h to 5 h . And to the west of Istanbul, surveying has started for a 230 km high speed line between Halkali and the Bulgarian border.

Other new routes envisaged include a line running southwest from Ankara to Izmir, which would also diverge at Polatli. This will intersect at Afyon with a north-south line from Eskisehir to the Mediterranean coast at Antalya, which is currently not served by rail. A branch from the Eskisehir – Izmit line at Osmaneli will run to Bursa, and another new line will diverge from the Sivas route at Yerköy to head southeast to Kayseri. Routes to serve eastern cities such as Erzincan, Malatya and Gaziantep are also under consideration.'

Then they are contradicting their own data since it is impossible to cover 350km in 1h 15min running at 250km/h. 430km in 1h 45min is also impossible.

KTX II which will be produced in Turkey and used by TCDD have a max. speed of 350 km/h. The spanish CAF's used right now have max. speed of 250 km/h.
This could be the explanation.

Turkish Highspeed Lines which will be completed between 2008-2013

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/9188/99241286.jpg (http://img4.imageshack.us/my.php?image=99241286.jpg)

Which station in Istanbul will be used for the new HSR line? Any pictures?

yaaay

Which station in Istanbul will be used for the new HSR line? Any pictures?

Istanbul's station will be underground (Yenikapi station) and at the same time it will be a hub where two metro lines, the marmaray line and hsr line meet and also Istanbul's biggest seabus terminal.

http://www.marmaray.com/images/tech_stn_yenikapi.jpg


Ankara's hsr station will be great!

BqeKh9D1gFE

It would be cool if they could build a HSL from Turkey to Bulgaria on one side and from Turkey to Iran on the other side.

as you can see in Tanjus post there is a project to expand the Ankara-Istanbul line to the Bulgarian border. Iran will remain just a dream for a couple of decades I guess.

But the Caucaus is real.The line in Turkey is going till Kars.And there is already a line from Kars over Tbilisi to Baku under construction

:cheers2::applause:

Turkey will have 2013 the longest High Speed Train lines of the world (3431 km).More than Spain (2230 km) and Japan (2090km) at this time.

Turkey will have 2013 the longest High Speed Train lines of the world (3431 km).More than Spain (2230 km) and Japan (2090km) at this time.

Still probably be behind PRC(People's Republic of China) though.

I think the current plan is very optimistic.

It is not going to happen, sorry.

Turkey will have 2013 the longest High Speed Train lines of the world (3431 km).More than Spain (2230 km) and Japan (2090km) at this time.

You left out China. It already has 250 kph on a huge amount of regular railroads, not to mention their 350 kph network under construction.

Beijing-Hong Kong + Beijing-Shanghai will be longer than Turkey, not to mention the rest

but hey, this is great news for turkey

this new network should also be used by freight

you shouldn't have taken the words of this guy that seriously at all but since you don't know him you took him seriuosly which is quite normal.

Turkish High Speed Train in Ankara Station

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/TCDD_HT65000_exterior_2.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/TCDD_HT65000_interior_3.jpg/800px-TCDD_HT65000_interior_3.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/TCDD_HT65000_interior_4.jpg/800px-TCDD_HT65000_interior_4.jpg

Turkish State Railways network: High-speed rail tracks in service, under construction and in plan

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/YHT_Turkey_1200x675.png/800px-YHT_Turkey_1200x675.png

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/2681/highspeedrailturkey.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/TCDD_CAF_1.jpg

Nice to see that Spain has Joined the likes of France and Germany and is starting to export its HST outside of Europe. Are there any plans to buld these CAF trains locally or is there only a deal with the Koreans?

Looks cool, are tickets expensive ?

Nice to see that Spain has Joined the likes of France and Germany and is starting to export its HST outside of Europe. Are there any plans to buld these CAF trains locally or is there only a deal with the Koreans?

No Turkey will built Korean KTX II under licence.CAF Trains are too slow.The High Speed Lines are built for over 350 km/h.KTX II reaches 350 km/h

http://www.zelpage.cz/news_n/ktx2_01.jpg

Joint venture EUROTEM factory in Adapazari ( joint enterprise between TÜVASAŞ of Turkey and ROTEM of South Korea )

http://img523.imageshack.us/img523/529/fatihcanfabrikadz8.jpg

Looks cool, are tickets expensive ?

Well the line between Ankara and Eskisehir costs 30 TL.This makes 15 €.Istanbul-Ankara will cost 50 TL = 25 €.

Trains are indeed too slow if considering the time won with a faster train over a distance such as ANK-IST. The KTX does look nice indeed, even though they should try and shake the TGV legacy from the design a bit more. So what will happen to these slower CAF trains? Will they be used as shuttles for shorter distances or will they be used in a Kodama-type of way (all-stop slow HST)?

No Turkey will built Korean KTX II under licence.CAF Trains are too slow.The High Speed Lines are built for over 350 km/h.KTX II reaches 350 km/h



The maximum design speed of KTX-II (http://www.rotem.co.kr/Eng/Business/Rail/Railroad/Product/rail1_pop09.asp) is 330 km/h and operational speed is 300 km/h.

The maximum design speed of KTX-II (http://www.rotem.co.kr/Eng/Business/Rail/Railroad/Product/rail1_pop09.asp) is 330 km/h and operational speed is 300 km/h.

still faster than CAF trains ;)

Only 8 months after its inauguration, Turkey's Ankara-Eskisehir high-speed service has derailed for the first time. In the accident two days ago, no-one was physically hurt, but some passengers suffered from nervous problems.
According to the press release by TCDD, the accident cause was not technical but the engineer's fault. Supposedly he had turned off the auto-control and was steering the train manually, but failed to decelerate enough before reaching the turnout (?) at Hasanbey just before Eskisehir, where the train leaves the high-speed track and switches onto the conventional railroute. At this point, the train should operate at 30 km/h, but was apparently still going at more than 100.
While this for the moment averts criticism from TCDD's high-speed infrastructure, it of course raises questions as to how good their driving training for the high-speed trains really was.

well its amazing that noone was hurt, so thats good i guess

At this point, the train should operate at 30 km/h, but was apparently still going at more than 100.
While this for the moment averts criticism from TCDD's high-speed infrastructure, it of course raises questions as to how good their driving training for the high-speed trains really was.

Yeah... well, it also raises some questions about the TCDD's infrastructure - not just their high-speed infrastructure. The HS trains into Paris or Tokyo also use the old "legacy lines" but they normally use them at speeds well above 100 km/h. I have fond memories of sitting in the Thalys and Eurostars into Gare du Nord, overtaking regional trains with so great speed difference that it looked like they were standing still. And yet...

...our Turkish friends say it was all the driver's fault for driving faster than 30 km/h? That's a good one! :lol:

Yeah... well, it also raises some questions about the TCDD's infrastructure - not just their high-speed infrastructure. The HS trains into Paris or Tokyo also use the old "legacy lines" but they normally use them at speeds well above 100 km/h. I have fond memories of sitting in the Thalys and Eurostars into Gare du Nord, overtaking regional trains with so great speed difference that it looked like they were standing still. And yet...

...our Turkish friends say it was all the driver's fault for driving faster than 30 km/h? That's a good one! :lol:

Well I don't see what's so funny. The high speed line from Ankara ends at
Eskicehir now, and trains have to switch back to the old infrastructure, but
that's temporary and will last only until the line is built on its entire length
to Istanbul. In those conditions TCDD did probably not bother to put in place
a very expensive high-speed switch that would be of no use in a mere few
years. It's a perfectly legitimate decision, wise use of public money.

^^My point was simply that it's an abherration to have legacy train lines that can accomodate only 30 km/h. In most of the countries embracing HS technologies in the last couple of decades 300 km/h implied a doubling of the speed that ordinary express trains were running at. In Eskicehir, apparently, the new HS line will increase the operations speed by a factor 10!

^^My point was simply that it's an abherration to have legacy train lines that can accomodate only 30 km/h. In most of the countries embracing HS technologies in the last couple of decades 300 km/h implied a doubling of the speed that ordinary express trains were running at. In Eskicehir, apparently, the new HS line will increase the operations speed by a factor 10!

You have to cut the Turkish State Railways some slack. After abondoning railway as an effective mode of transportation more than 50 yars ago under American influence, they are now trying to change this. Their approach, jumping from 19th century to 21st century standard without bothering to first bring the existing track up to the 20th century is criticized by a lot of us in the Turkish forum, but once they start to change things, there are obviously going to be compromises. The track concerned will be replaced once the train station of Eskisehir is moved underground in the course of HSR construction. Besides: the train was slowing down to enter a station. Nowhere, not even in Paris Montparnasse do trains race into a station at 100 k+ and stop on a dime.

^^Sure, sure, sure... I'm slowly coming to terms with a different development concept from the one I've been used to. I am used to think of HSLs as the "icing on the cake" of a railway network that is already modern and reasonably fast. In Turkey, according to what you say, it is more like a jump to a new paradigm?

But, in all fairness, it has probably been a bit the same in earlier days in Spain. I certainly remember taking, in my early youth, "Rapido" trains that were less rapid than the London underground. In Spain, however, the paradoxes of a lamentable legacy architecture combined with an ultra-modern HS concept has been felt less acutely because of the change in gauge width: an AVE train cannot just run headlong onto the old tracks.

As for 100 km/h in France, you are certainly correct that this speed cannot be employed for the last couple of kilometers before halt. However, I was on the ICE3 from Frankfurt to Paris last Sunday and I can assure you that it was still keeping a respectable 150 km/h through the suburbs - in spite of track crossings and legacy rail with wodden beams.

Spain is definitely the better comparison. Or Greece ten years ago, or Eastern Germany after reunification, although any of them would beat the technical standards of the average Turkish railtrack by lengths. The problem is the PR: politicians here like making grand standing declarations of high-speed rail links to China and to Mecca that lead people to believe that Turkey is living in the high-tech age. When you actually take a train, you remember that there is nothing to it. Having said that, Turkish trains are still among the cheapest in Europe (including the restaurant cars), offer much space per passenger and treats you to great scenery.

^^My point was simply that it's an abherration to have legacy train lines that can accomodate only 30 km/h.

Not a line... Just a temporary switch to link the new HSL with the legacy line at the entrance at Eskicehir station, and that will be lifted out when the HSL
is fully operational.

Btw Ankara-Konya highspeed line:

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/1.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/4.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/6.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/7.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/9.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/10.jpg

Not a line... Just a temporary switch to link the new HSL with the legacy line at the entrance at Eskicehir station, and that will be lifted out when the HSL
is fully operational.

I hope they'll remember to upgrade the 30 km/h-piece as well, then. There's bound to be future cases of incidents (accidents, power failure...) blocking the new line between Eskicehir and Istanbul. In that case the traffic controllers will instruct the train to take the legacy rail for a certain distance. If the cross-over remains 30 km/h, in the middle of a HS line and a not-too-slow legacy line than I safely (and sadly...) predict more accidents in the future.

Hans, how many times do we have to explain it, the present day station of Eskisehir will be moved underground in the course of the construction. The switch onto old rails is just until the new line/tunnel will be built, afterwards the old track will only be used freight and conventional trains.
Messi, I like your pics. While track laying looks quite advanced on this stretch, for some reason nothing has happened inside the city limits of Konya itself. I do not know what they are waiting for, if they want to get this train running in 2010.

Hans, how many times do we have to explain it, the present day station of Eskisehir will be moved underground in the course of the construction. The switch onto old rails is just until the new line/tunnel will be built, afterwards the old track will only be used freight and conventional trains.

Was that a royal "we", Baron? :lol:

I did, in fact, understand first time you told me that the Eskesehir solution is an interim to be replaced when the rest of the line opens. My point was about something else: some form of switch to the old rails will no doubt (?) be maintained also after the tunnel has been built. The hopes I humbly expressed was that the railway company will remember to upgrade that switch as well. Because, otherwise we know what will happen: a new generation of train drivers will forget that the switch is enabled for 30 km/h only, one day the new line will be blocked, and the trains redirected to take the old tracks after Esksehir, and then....

Btw Ankara-Konya highspeed line:

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/1.jpg

http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/genel/sonhizlikonya/son/4.jpg

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Ankara-Konya line is planned to open at the end of 2010 :cheers:

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The graphic above is meant to elaborate what I wrote in reply to Hans about the YHT accident in Hasanbey and why the problem of switching from new to old rails before entering Eskisehir will disappear once works progress. We are presently in the middle stage of redevelopment, the bottom shows the tracks as they should appear once all works around Eskisehir have finished.

News on the Istanbul-Ankara line developments:
# Electric wires have been activated on the missing stretch of high-speed track of 15 km between Sincan and Esenkent on the periphery of Ankara. Let us see how much longer it takes them to get this track into operation and thus reduce the travelling speed between Ankara and Eskisehir to the intended 1 hour 5 minutes or thereabouts.
# It is announced that the last part of the Ankara-Istanbul rail corridor rebuilding will open for bidding end of this month. The 56 km east of the Istanbul city limits (Gebze-Köseköy) will be reconstructed mostly with EU money. Strictly speaking this is no longer high speed, as the line will only be increased to a speed of 160 km/h (enough to reduce traveling time from 39 to 24 mins.). As construction should start second half of this year and there is no difference to the present route, Istanbul will be completely cut off from rail for at least 2 1/2 years. Works are coordinated to coincide with the closing down of the commuter railways to Gebze and the destruction of the historical railway stations along this line (and the Halkali line).
So everyone take a last tour on the Gebze suburban railway (or take a spin through the Byzantine city from Yedikule to Sirkeci, one of the most spectacular urban railway lines I know), take some fotographs of the early 20th century stations such as Göztepe. We might never see any of this again.

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