Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep railway
Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep high-speed railway | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Native name | Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep yüksek hızlı demiryolu |
Status | Under construction |
Locale | Southern standard gauge |
Electrification | 25 kV AC, 15 Hz |
Operating speed | 160–200 km/h (99–124 mph)[1] |
Signalling | ETCS L1 |
The Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep high-speed railway (Turkish: Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep yüksek hızlı demiryolu), known officially as the Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep higher-speed railway (Turkish: Mersin–Adana–Gaziantep yüksek standartlı demiryolu) and abbreviated as MAG, is a 303 km (188 mi) long high-speed/higher-speed railway corridor currently under construction in southern Turkey. Beginning at Mersin, on the Mediterranean Sea, the railway corridor stretches inland to Gaziantep, via Yenice, Adana and Osmaniye. The scope of the project includes the upgrading of three existing railway lines, the construction of a new railway tunnel bypass, and the construction of a new, direct rail-link to Gaziantep.
Background
The entire MAG railway stretches across a populated and economically significant region of Turkey. The combined population of the four main provinces the railway runs through (
In terms of passenger rail, the Mersin-Adana railway is by far the busiest in the region with around 29 daily round-trips between Mersin and Adana at around 45-minute intervals. Passenger train traffic east of Adana is considerably less but still provides a rail link via regional and intercity trains. The single-track railway hampers capacity as freight trains have a larger priority along the route.
Other high/higher-speed railways are being built simultaneously with the MAG railway. The 242 km (150 mi) long section of the Konya-Yenice railway is being upgraded to higher-speed rail standards: the 135 km (84 mi) section from
Project
The following projects are either under construction or have been completed, as part of the MAG railway corridor:
Line | Section | Tracks | Length | Top speed | Status | Project | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
km | mi | ||||||
Mersin–Adana railway | Mersin–Adana | 4 | 78 | 48 | 200 km/h (120 mph) | Under construction | Adding 3rd and 4th tracks to the existing double-track railway; constructing a 19 km (12 mi) branch line to Çukurova Airport .
|
Adana–Aleppo railway | Adana–Bahçe | 2 | 137 | 85 | 200 km/h (120 mph) | Under construction | Adding second-track to existing single-track railway; upgrading track geometry to accommodate higher speeds. |
Fevzipaşa bypass
|
Bahçe–Nurdağı | 2 | 17 | 11 | 120 km/h (75 mph) | Under construction | Constructing a new bypass through the Nur Mountains, via the 9.95 km (6.18 mi) long Nurdağı Tunnel. |
Nurdağı–Başpınar railway | Nurdağı–Başpınar | 2 | 56 | 35 | 200 km/h (120 mph) | Under construction | Constructing a new, direct, double-track railway between Nurdağı and Başpınar. |
Narlı–Karkamış railway | Başpınar–Gaziantep | 4 | 16 | 9.9 | 120 km/h (75 mph) | Completed | Expanding the single-track railway through Gaziantep to a quadruple-track railway; Rebuilding existing stations; Constructing new stations for a new commuter rail service. |
Right of way
The existing railways were constructed between 1886 and 1953. The
The Turkish government greatly neglected its railways from the 1950s onward and the route, which was designed to accommodate steam locomotives, was never upgraded or improved in any significant way, apart from the section between Mersin and Adana which was double-tracked in the 1990s.[6] The MAG Railway project will expand the right of way in certain areas and increase the radius on certain curves. The biggest change to the existing right-of-way of is between Mamure and Bahçe, where the railway will take a slightly northern route while climbing up to the Bahçe pass. Apart from this section, since most of the existing railway passes through a relatively flat landscape, no other significant changes to the route are in the works.
Within Gaziantep, a new 3,640 m (11,940 ft) long cut-and-cover tunnel was built west of Gaziantep station, bringing the railway underground.
Electrification
The 63 km (39 mi) long section between Toprakkale and Fevzipaşa was electrified with 25 kV AC overhead wire in 1994. This was done as part of the wider electrification from Divriği to İskenderun, an important iron-ore route in Turkey.[6] Electrification was extended west from Toprakkale to Adana in 2016 and to Yenice in 2017.[7] The MAG railway will electrify the remaining 43 km (27 mi) between Yenice and Mersin, as well as the 25 km (16 mi) long stretch of track in Gaziantep, which opened in November 2022.
New railways
The MAG railway project includes the construction of 73 km (45 mi) of new railways. The first new line is the Fevzipaşa bypass, which includes the 9,950 m (32,640 ft) long Nurdağı Tunnel. This will branch off of the Adana-Aleppo railway east of Bahçe station. Instead of climbing up further, the bypass will enter the tunnel at about 117 m (384 ft) lower than the existing Ayran Tunnel. After exiting the tunnel within the Sağlık Plain, the bypass will continue for 3 km (1.9 mi) until joining the Fevzipaşa-Kurtalan railway at Nurdağı. Just north of Nurdağı station, the Nurdağı-Başpınar railway will branch off with a more direct route to Gaziantep, through the Sof Mountains. This new railway will shorten the route to Gaziantep by 96 km (60 mi).[8]
A new 19 km (12 mi) long branch line from Yenice to the new
References
- ^ "Mersin-Adana-Gaziantep Hızlı Tren Projesi". tcdd.gov.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Gross Domestic Product by Provinces, 2021". data.tuik.gov.tr. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Yük İstatistikleri". denizcilikistatistikleri.uab.gov.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Konteyner İstatistikleri". denizcilikistatistikleri.uab.gov.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Çerkezköy-Kapıkule hızlı tren hattı ne zaman tamamlanacak?". yenisafak.com.tr (in Turkish). 12 December 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ a b "TCDD History". trainsofturkey.com. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "811 km demiryolu elektriklendi". tr.railturkey.org (in Turkish). 30 June 2020. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Nurdağ - Başpınar Hızlı Tren Projesi". railwayturkey.com. 27 October 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Proje Hakkında". mersingaziantepyht.com (in Turkish). Retrieved 11 May 2023.