Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu stated that 885 thousand passengers have traveled on the Ankara-Sivas YHT Line, which was opened last year, and that they have put the YHT stations on the line into service one by one. Uraloğlu said, "Sorgun YHT Station, which we opened today, will serve 240 thousand passengers." Minister Uraloğlu underlined that they are currently continuing construction work on the 3 kilometer high-speed train line.
Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu opened the Ankara-Sivas High Speed Train (YHT) Line Sorgun Station Building. In his speech here, Minister Uraloğlu explained that they took railways as a state policy under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and emphasized that they made a breakthrough in railways so that the opportunities provided by Turkey's geographical location can turn into economic and commercial advantages. Underlining that they have approached railways with a new approach suitable for combined transportation by providing the connection of railway lines to ports, airports and logistics centers, Uraloğlu said, “With our projects, we planned to make railway transportation contributing to the economy not only on the east-west line but also between our north-south coasts. We have invested over 22 billion dollars in railways in the last 57 years. "Between 2002 and 2024, we made serious investments, improvement, renewal and development moves in the railways in our country," he said.
84 Million Passengers Used YHT Lines
Minister Uraloğlu stated that they increased the line length, which was 2002 thousand 10 km in 948, to 13 thousand 919 kilometers and that they built 2 thousand 252 kilometers of high-speed train line, and that they increased the length of the signaled line from 2 thousand 505 kilometers to 8 thousand 46 kilometers. Minister Uraloğlu emphasized that the length of the electrified line, which was 2 thousand 122 kilometers, increased to 7 thousand 142 kilometers, and said: We introduced our country to High Speed Train operation, which was our half-century-old dream, and made it the 6th high-speed train operator in Europe and the 8th in the world. We have now turned railway travel, which was not preferred by our citizens for many years, into the first address for those who want fast and comfortable travel. In 2009, Eskişehir became the first city in our country to meet the High Speed Train with the Eskişehir-Ankara line.
High-speed train operation, which started between Ankara and Eskişehir, continues on the Ankara-Istanbul, Ankara-Konya, Konya-Eskişehir, Istanbul-Konya, Konya-Karaman and, of course, Ankara-Sivas routes, which we put into service last year. To date, the total number of passengers traveling on our high-speed train lines has reached 84 million. "Currently, our high-speed train lines provide direct service to 11 cities and indirect service to 9 cities through regional and bus connections, reaching 50 percent of our country's population," he said.
Main Backbone of the East-West High Speed Rail Corridor
Uraloğlu emphasized that the Ankara-Sivas Line is not just a line connecting two cities and said that this line is also the main backbone of the East-West high-speed railway corridor extending from Edirne to Kars. Stating that the planned Ankara-Kayseri High Speed Train line will be connected to this line, Uraloğlu said, “Again, our high-speed train line connecting Samsun and Ankara will be connected to our Ankara-Sivas Line via Delice. Of course, following Sivas; "With the Sivas-Erzincan, Erzincan-Erzurum, Erzurum-Kars high-speed train projects, Dilucu and Ankara high-speed train connection will also be provided," he said.
885 Thousand Passengers Traveled on Ankara-Sivas YHT Line
Minister Uraloğlu reminded that with the entry into service of the Ankara-Sivas YHT line, they reduced the Sivas-Ankara travel time, which took an average of 5,5 hours by road and 12 hours by train, to 2,5 hours, and the distance between Ankara and Yozgat to 1,5 hours. Stating that the time between Sorgun and Ankara has been reduced to 1 hour and 40 minutes, Uraloğlu emphasized that Kırıkkale, Yozgat and Sivas were connected to the Ankara-centered high-speed train network with the project, and said, “Approximately 1,4 million people had the opportunity to travel directly by high-speed train. "We have carried 885 thousand passengers on our Ankara-Sivas YHT line since the day it was opened," he said.
YHT Station with a capacity of 240 thousand passengers in Sorgun
Reminding that there are 8 stations on the line, namely Elmadağ, Kırıkkale, Yerköy, Yozgat, Sorgun, Akdağmadeni, Yıldızeli and Sivas, Uraloğlu reminded that they built Kırıkkale, Yozgat and Sivas High Speed Train stations in the first stage. Uraloğlu said, “Now, we will put Sorgun Station into service, one of our other High Speed Train stations that suits this unique line. We built Sorgun Station on an area of 12 thousand square meters with a capacity of 2 thousand passengers. With a closed building area of 240 m980, the station will provide service with many social facilities, including a parking lot with a capacity of 2 vehicles and 100 buses, 5 underpass, 1 platforms and a waiting room. "Our station was built to suit the Ankara-Sivas High Speed Train line with its modern and aesthetic designs," he said.
Construction Works Continue on the 3 Thousand 600 Kilometer High Speed Train Line
Minister Uraloğlu announced that they aim to reduce the share of freight transportation on highways from 2053 percent to 72 percent in line with the 57 targets, and that they plan to increase the transportation share of railways from 5 percent to 22 percent. Stating that the railways aim to increase the annual average number of passengers in passenger transportation from 19 million to 270 million, Uraloğlu said, “In order to achieve these targets, in order to develop our railway network; Ankara-Afyonkarahisar-Uşak-Manisa-İzmir, Bandırma-Bursa-Osmaneli, Halkalı-Our construction works continue on a total of 3 thousand 600 kilometers of High Speed Train line, including Kapıkule, Mersin-Adana-Osmaniye-Gaziantep, Karaman-Ulukışla-Mersi and Yerköy-Kayseri lines. We will increase our railway line length to 2028 thousand 17 kilometers by the end of 657. "According to our 2053 Transportation and Logistics master plan, we aim to increase our railway line length to 28 thousand 590 kilometers," he said. Uraloğlu underlined that they will complete a transportation network that significantly supports the Central Corridor with the high-speed train lines planned from Ankara to Kapıkule. Uraloğlu explained that they are aware of the demands of the citizens in Sorgun and stated that they will also carry out work on 7 intersections at the entrance of Sorgun.