Metro of Ankara

Metros in Turkey: Ankara

Ankara is the capital of the Republic of Turkey. Even though it hosts the headquarters of the different branches of the government, as well as being the headquarters of the Turkish diplomatic missions, Ankara is not the most populated city of the country. It has slightly over 5 million inhabitants. The most populated city of Turkey is Istanbul.

The capital is located within the Asian continent, and it is the most important city on the Central Anatolia region. Ankara, also known as Angora, holds a special place in the Turkish economy, partly because it is located on the geographic center of the region. The city is the center of the Turkish highway network, as well as being the center of the existing railway lines in the country. Because of this, Ankara has become a commercial center that supplies crops, livestock, and manufactured goods to the adjacent regions.

It is a city that is also special thanks to its flora and fauna. For instance, the Angora long-haired goats are worldwide famous due to their peculiar wool. The Angora cats are also famous. And let´s not forget about the honey and pears that are made in Ankara.

Most of the important historical events of the region can be seen throughout Ankara´s different historical sites. The first records of human settlements in the area date back to the Bronze Age. Therefore, the foundation of this city took place before the modern era. Ankara belonged to the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, the Ottoman Empire, until it finally became its own country, the Republic of Turkey.

During the warmest months of the year, the average temperature ranges between 22 and 30 ºC. Meanwhile, during the coldest months it ranges between 2.5 and -3 ºC.

Ankara Metrosu

The Metro

The Ankara Metrosu is a transportation system that offers transportation to the Turkish capital, having a total distance of 64.36 kilometers, which includes the distance covered by the light rail line. If we only take into account the four main lines of the metro, the total distance covered by the metro is of only 57.2 kilometers.

It has 22.8 meter-long trains, and the total number of wagons of the metro is of 108 wagons. Previously, the trains used on this transportation system were made by the firm known as the Urban Transportation Development Corporation (UTDC), which was later owned by Bombardier, a German-Canadian company. The trains made by this company were trains from the sixth generation of the H series train models. However, on the year 2012, the owners requested an upgrade for the metro’s fleet, which was followed up by asking a Chinese company, known as CRRC Zhuzhou, to construct 324 new wagons.

Unlike the four main lines of the metro, the Ankara light rail, also known as the Ankaray, has 11 functioning trains of three wagons each. Each one of them has a length of 29 meters. The rolling stock of the light rail is manufactured by a firm called Siemens-Adtranz-Ansaldobreda, S.P.A. (AnsaldoBreda.)

The number of daily passengers that use the system was of 289,255 passengers during the year 2014. The system´s operator is a public firm called General Management of Electricity, Gas, and Buses (EGO.)

• Name: Ankara Metrosu.
• Length: 64.36 kilometers if we take into account the light rail, and 57.2 kilometers without taking into account the light rail.
• Railroad’s width: 1,435 mm.
• Number of lines: 4 lines for the main metro, and one light rail line.
• Number of stations: 54 if we include the light rail, and 42 if we do not take into account the light rail.
• Maximum speed: 80 km/h.
• Website: www.ego.gov.tr
• Operator: General Management of Electricity, Gas, and Buses (EGO.)
• Daily ridership: 289,155 passengers in 2014.
• Inauguration date: August 20th, 1996 for the light railway, and December 29th, 1997 for the rest of the metro.

Short history

With the passing of time, Ankara, being a big city, started needing a definitive solution for their ongoing transportation problems. This is the reason why, after many municipal and national political leaders proposed a number of plans and projects, the construction of the first line of the Ankara Metro begun on March 28th, 1993. Almost four years later, on December 29th, 1997, the Ankara Metrosu’s first line would be inaugurated, having 12 stations and 108 wagons ready to use. However, technically speaking, the first part of the Ankara Metro had been inaugurated a few months prior with the inauguration of the light rail, on August 20th, 1996. The light rail, also known as Ankaray, had been under construction since 1992

The Ankara Metro has been growing uninterruptedly since the inauguration of both the four main lines and its light rail line. This can be seen in the fact that each of the remaining three lines begun to be constructed one year after the other: line 3´s construction began on 2001, line 2’s construction began on 2002, and line 4’s construction began on 2003. All three of them were inaugurated well over a decade after the beginning of their construction. On February, 2014, line 3 was inaugurated. Meanwhile, on March of that same year, line 2 began to be operational. On January, 2017, line 4 was opened to the public. However, this line has an additional route under construction that is expected to be finished by 2019.

Lines and stations

The Ankara Metrosu is comprised of four metro lines and a light rail line. If we take into account all four lines and the light rail line, the entire metro system has 54 stations spread throughout 64.36 kilometers. For many years, the system had a single line. Nowadays, the metro system has had three additional lines. The Ankara Metro lines are:

Line 1

Inaugurated on December 29th, 1997, it was the first line of the system. With this line, the Ankara Metrosu was officially opened to the public. It currently has 14.66 kilometers in length within 12 stations. Its terminal stations are Kızılay and Batıkent. To travel between these two stations, the metro makes a journey that goes from the south-central part of the city to the northwestern part of it. This line’s signature color is red. The line combines underground stations in downtown Ankara. Above ground-level, there are both surface-level stations and elevated stations.

Line 2

Its construction began on the year 2002, but it wasn´t until March, 2014, that it was finally inaugurated. Its length is of 16.59 kilometers, making it the longest metro line of the system. It has 10 stations spread throughout the terminal stations of Kızılay and Koru. Its signature color is yellow. The entire road within this line is located at the south of the city, and it is connected at the end with line 1. This entire line is located underground.

Line 3

The trains from this line make a journey from Batıkent to Törekent, which is 15.36 kilometers long. Its construction began on the year 2001, and it was finally inaugurated on February 2014. Line 3 from the Ankara Metrosu has 11 stations, which are all located at the northwestern end of the city, where they connect with line 1. Most of this line is painted in dark blue. This line has both underground and elevated stations, and they are all spread throughout different locations.

Line 4

This is the smallest line of the system, and also the most recent one since it was inaugurated on the year 2017. Currently, it has 9 stations. Its terminal stations are Atatürk Cultural Center and Gazino. However, there is a new terminal station under construction in Kızılay. Therefore, in the future, the terminal stations will be Atatürk Cultural Center and Kızılay. There is a planned project of building a station at Kuyubaşı, which will offer a connection to the Esenboğa International Airport. This line has a length of 9.22 kilometers, and its stations are located between the northern part of the city and downtown Ankara. You can recognize it because of its lilac color.

Ankaray

This is the light rail line of the Ankara Metro, and the only light rail line of the city. It was inaugurated on 1996, and it has 11 stations spread throughout 8.53 kilometers. Its terminal stations are located at Dikimevi and AŞTİ. It is located on downtown Ankara, and the trains of this line transit from east to west Ankara. From the entire road of the light rail, only a 6.68 kilometer section of it is located underground. The signature color of this line is dark green.

Connections with other systems

A lot of transportation systems are needed on big cities such as Ankara in order to cover the transportation needs of most of the population of the city. Indeed, Ankara has enough transportation services for its huge number of inhabitants partly because it is a capital. Additionally, in order to help more people to have access to transportation, the Ankara Metrosu´s owners have contacted other transportation companies in order to offer transfers between the Ankara Metro and other means of transportation.

The most important transportation service that is linked with the Ankara Metro is the bus service. The buses are also managed by the firm EGO, which has a big fleet of different buses that go through numerous routes. In some occasions, the buses are fueled with natural gas. Recently, a mobile app was created so that people could check information from the different routes. Most of the buses have connections with the stations from the Ankara Metrosu.

Another transportation service available for the citizens of Ankara is the commuter rail, also known as the BAŞKENTRAY. It is a commuter rail that transits between the towns of Sincan and Kayas. Its road is 27 kilometers long. This commuter rail is operated by the TCDD, which is the State Railway Company of the Republic Turkey. To make a connection from the commuter rail to line 1 of the Ankara Metro, you have to make the transfer at Sıhhiye station, while the connection with the light rail line (the Ankaray) is done at Kurtuluş station.

Finally, another transportation system with connections with the Ankara Metro is the Yenimahalle-Şentepe aerial lift, which operates on the Yenimahalle district of Turkey’s capital. This aerial lift has four stations: Yenimahalle, Yunus Emre, TRT Vericiler and Şentepe. From Yenimahalle station, you could make a connection with line 1 of the metro. The entire journey covers a length of 3.25 kilometers.

Connections with the airport

The city of Ankara has a main airport, called the Esenboğa International Airport. The airport is located 28 kilometers to the north of the city, between the counties of Akyurt and Varilla. The operator of this airport is the TAV Airports firm. The airport was inaugurated on 1955. This is the fourth busiest international airport in Turkey, and it’s the third busiest airport in regards of domestic flights. Since the airport is far away from the city, it’s necessary to make a transfer from the metro to another means of transportation to reach it.

There is no other option than boarding a bus in order to go from the airport to the Ankara Metro system. First of all, you could take an Either Havaş bus, which offers two routes. The first route goes towards Ulus, which offers a transfer to line 1 of the metro. The second route goes towards AŞTİ, which makes a connection with the Ankaray, that is, the light rail line of the metro. Another bus that goes from the airport to the metro is bus line 442. This bus goes to Kızılay station, which is a station of lines 1, 2 and the light rail line of the metro. You need to be aware while travelling in bus 442 towards Kızılay, since it’s easy to miss the stop and you may end up lost.

Schedule and train frequency

The Ankara Metro schedules are quite similar among its lines, but they still have some slight differences. One thing that the schedule of all lines have in common is the hour at which all trains begin operations. All stations are open at 6:00 in the morning, when the first trains depart.

For the metro’s line 1, the last train arrives at Kızılay station at 1:00 in the morning, while the last train arrives at the Batikent terminal station arrives at 12:30 at midnight. The train frequency during weekdays ranges between four and 9 minutes. Meanwhile, during Saturdays and Sundays, ranges between 9 and 15 minutes.

For the Ankara Metro’s line 2, the last train arrives to Kızılay station at 1:00 in the morning, while Koru station ceases operations at 12:30 at midnight. The train frequency during weekdays oscillates between 7 and 11 minutes. During weekends, the train frequency ranges between 9 and 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, for the Ankara Metrosu’s line 3, the last train arrives at Batikent station at 1:25 in the morning, while the last train arrives at Osb station at midnight. From Monday to Friday, the train frequency ranges between four and 9 minutes. During Saturdays and Sundays, the train frequency oscillates between 9 and 15 minutes.

In line 4, the metro system ends operations at 1:15 in the morning at Akm station. Meanwhile, the last train arrives at Sehitler station at 12:20 at midnight. This line has the train frequencies with the smallest time gaps between trains. The frequency for this line varies between 6 and 8 minutes during weekdays, and it varies between 8 and 10 minutes during weekends.

Finally, the Ankaray’s last train arrives at Asti station at 12:50 at midnight, while the last train that reaches Dikimevi station arrives at 12:55 at midnight. The train frequency on the light rail line varies between six and 10 minutes.

Fares, tickets, and cards

Even though the Ankara Metrosu is a complex transportation system that has many lines and schedules, the firm EGO has created a fixed fare system, which includes the fares for both the metro and buses. First, there’s the One Ride ticket. This ticket costs 2.50 Turkish liras (0.82 USD.) Next is the Reduced Fare ticket, which has a price of 1.75 Turkish liras (0.46 USD.) If you wish to make a transfer, you will have to pay one additional Turkish lira (0.26 USD,) or just 0.25 liras (0.07 USD) if you are using a Reduced Fare ticket.

There is a ticket available that could be used for both the metro and buses, called the Integral Ticket. This ticket costs 4 Turkish liras (1.05 USD.) You can use a card called the Smart Card to make a transfer, which allows you to have up to two transfers within a period of 75 minutes. With the card known as the Discount Card, the transfer fare is lower. Like the Smart Card, you should make the transfer with the Discount card within 75 minutes. Teachers, students, and retired people are entitled to the system’s reduced fares. Children under 6 travel for free.

The metro’s rules

In order to provide a peaceful environment among the users of the system, the Ankara Metrosu has created different rules that all passengers must follow. Some of them are:

• It is obligatory to go through the turnstiles while having a valid ticket. The passenger will always have to show its ticket if asked so, and the will also have to show their valid ID and any other documentation needed if they have a reduced fare ticket. Otherwise, you could be fined.
• The consumption of any food or beverage is prohibited. Also, you cannot smoke within the system’s facilities. Additionally, if you’re drunk, you cannot board the metro.
• Access to the metro with flammable or explosive materials is not allowed.
• A passenger can only bring luggage with a maximum weight of up to 30 kilograms among all the suitcases that they bring. The person should always have their bags and suitcases with them.
• Pets are not allowed, unless they are carried inside a cage.
• You cannot board the trains with skateboards, and you cannot ride a skateboard within the stations. This rule also applies for bikes and other similar transportation devices. However, strollers are allowed.

Future expansions

The expansion of the Ankara Metrosu is part of a future plan for the system. Currently, two big tracks are under construction, and one is being planned. The first expansion being done for this system consists on the construction of three stations for line 4, all of which will be inaugurated on 2019. This expansion will add 3.3 kilometers of railroad to the metro, which will go from Kızılay to the Atatürk Cultural Center.

There is also an expansion for the light rail line under construction, where an additional station called Söğütözü is being built. This station will be close to AŞTİ station. This expansion will bring 1.1 kilometers of additional railroad to the metro, and will allow a connection with line 2. Finally, there are plans to build a new line, line 5, for the Ankara Metro. This line will have a 25 kilometer-long railroad and 7 stations. This line will allow the trains to go from Kuyubaşı to both the Esenboğa International Airport and the Yildirim Beyazit University.

Tips

• Always keep your ticket with you. If you acquired a ticket at a reduced fare, have the documentation that certifies that you are entitled to that ticket on hand.
• Check the route that you plan to use before boarding in order to save time. Also, check for possible bus connections.
• Keep in mind the number of transfers between systems before buying your ticket.
• There are only a few maps of the metro among the stations and trains, which is why it’s important that you check your route beforehand or that you keep a map with you.

Fun facts:

• This system is quite colorful, which can be observed in its trains with red and orange designs. Also, the stations show the signature colors of each line.
• On the new lines, pre-recorded messages are played in Turkish and in English to give information to passengers.
• You could ride in many different transportation services, including the air lift and the bus, by using the metro ticket.

What to see from the Ankara Metro

Ankara, the capital of Turkey, is a city that offers many activities. This is why more and more tourists wish to come to Turkey. One of the reasons Ankara is attractive is because it is a capital city. A lot of people enjoy visiting Ankara’s different historical monuments, parks and attractions. Both tourists and people from Ankara visit these places. Some of these touristic attractions are:

• Atatürk Mausoleum: Also known in Turkish as Anıtkabir, this is the place where the remains of the founder of the Republic of Turkey, Mustapha Kemal Atatürk, lie. The mausoleum’s structure is huge, and its design imitates the style of Greek and Roman architecture. It was designed by the architects Emin Onat and Orhan Arda, and it was inaugurated on 1953. To reach it, you should disembark at Anadolu station from the light rail line, and then walk uphill on the steep hill towards the mausoleum.
• Ankara University: This was the first higher education institute established on the Republic of Turkey. Its campus is big, and it has a total of 17 departments. The closest station is Anadolu station from the light rail line, which was known as Tandoğan until 2015. Another alternative would be to disembark at Beşevler station.
• Gençlik Park: It literally translates into “Youth’s Park.” This small park could be incredibly cozy to whoever visits it. It has a great spring, ideal for people that wishes to stay at a peaceful place. Also, it has a theme park, in which there is a Ferris wheel and an amusement attraction shaped like a space shuttle. It is really close to the Ulus station, which belongs to line 1, and is named after the plaza that surrounds the northern part of the park.