Istanbul Metro, the scheme and working conditions of which will be discussed in this article, is the most convenient form of transport. Maybe tourists will not agree with this opinion. Subway - it is also a subway in Turkey: outside the train window there is only darkness and no sights for you. But the metro can easily and quickly get from one area of the metropolis to another. Istanbul is a truly gigantic city in terms of territory. It is conveniently located immediately on two continents - in Europe and Asia. But not only the Golden Horn water area served as an obstacle to logistics. The real scourge of Istanbul is traffic jams. And no new road junctions can cope with this scourge. Getting by land from the city center to Ataturk's main international airport used to be a real problem for tourists. Tram, ferry, bus ... Now these difficulties are in the past. But a titanic work was done, to which we simply must devote several lines.
History
When did the first metro line of Istanbul appear? Turkey became the first country in continental Europe and the second (after the UK) in the world to acquire underground transport. On January 17, 1875, the Tunel was opened to the public. A 573-meter line connected Karakoy with Galata. It is now called the funicular. By the way, the London Underground (the oldest in the world) was opened in 1863. Istanbul is a city in the very center of which there is an extended water area, like no other needed a subway. Plans for the construction of the metro began to be put forward at the very beginning of the twentieth century. The first of them was proposed in 1912 by the French engineer L. Herbie. His idea of laying a branch with twenty-four stations between Topkapi and Sisli was not destined to be realized. Also on paper were the projects of the French G. Prost (1936), M. Langevin (1952) and the Dutch company Nedeco. The situation with the construction of the metro was complicated by the extremely active seismic situation. There are nine magnitude earthquakes in the Istanbul area.
Subway construction
The first works started only in 1989. But at what pace! Now (at the time of the first half of 2017) five metro lines of Istanbul have been commissioned. The scheme of underground communication will soon expand due to four more lines under construction. 250 million people use the metro annually. Four lines are located in the European part, and one in the Asian part. Seventy stations have now been put into operation, but about thirty more are under construction at the same time. Due to the seismic situation, workers are working in an open way. The most popular is the M1 line. This is the "easy" (Hafif) metro. The line connects the central region of Aksaray with the western regions of Istanbul. Thanks to the opening of the Marmaray tunnel under the waters, communication between the European and Asian parts of the metropolis became possible.
Travel Conditions in Istanbul Metro
The subway runs from six in the morning until midnight. The interval of train movement is very dependent on the branch and especially on the time of day. At rush hour it is four minutes. The Istanbul metro, the scheme of which is getting thicker and longer every year, has one peculiarity. Transition between branches is paid separately. You can enter the subway by throwing a token into the slot of the turnstile. These rounds are sold in vending machines at stations and at the box office. There is one token four lira. If you intend to actively travel around the city by public transport, we recommend purchasing Istanbulkart. You will have to pay for the card itself, but with it you can ride the metro, trams and buses for two and a half lira.
Is there a metro scheme of Istanbul in Russian?
All stations have a detailed map of subway lines and stops. It is duplicated in English. Many tourists are interested in whether there is an Istanbul metro scheme in Russian. Unfortunately, there is no such card yet. At least in the subway. Finding it on the Internet is also problematic. It exists in paper form, usually in guidebooks and phrase books that are distributed by some hotels and travel companies. But English duplication makes clear the pronunciation of station names. And the branches are marked with different colors: red, green, blue, purple. And they are simply called: M1, M2, and so on. It should also be taken into account that tram lines and a cable car leading to Galata hill are included in the scheme.
Istanbul Metro: Description
Let's try to figure out the subway map. Each line on it has its own color. For example, the smallest and oldest, climbing the Galat hill, is indicated by purple. “Easy subway” is indicated in blue. This is the most popular branch, as it passes through the key sights of Istanbul, as well as connects with the airport to them. Ataturk. There are twenty-three stations on the line. When using this thread, tourists often experience incidents. The fact is that M1 has two directions M1A and M1B. Both routes start from Yenikapi and pass Aksaray. When landing, you should carefully monitor where the train is going. If you are at the airport, you need the M1A. Another branch ends at Kirazli. The red line was laid relatively recently, but because it has all the infrastructure for people with reduced mobility. It connects the center with the northern districts of Istanbul.
Other lines
The Istanbul Metro, the scheme of which is available both in paper and in interactive form, remains the most convenient means of transportation around the city. Tourists should not be afraid to get lost in underground stations. All you need to know for a transit traveler who wants to quickly see the sights, and then get to the airports, train station or main marina, this is where there are two lines (M1 and M2) and a funicular. The remaining three branches connect the city center with remote sleeping areas.