Connecting Istanbul’s east and west, Marmaray suburban rail line officially opens. The long-awaited Marmaray project, revamping the existing suburban rail line with a tunnel connecting the sections separated by the Bosporus, finally came into service with all sections opening on Tuesday. The line, operated by the Turkish State Railways (TCDD) was opened in a ceremony in the Kartal district on the Asian side of Istanbul.
This line, the busiest and most heavily-trafficked route in Istanbul, will carry 75,000 passengers an hour and 1.7 million passengers per day. In other words, this suburban rail line will carry passengers that would normally require 100,000 vehicles.