Turkey has announced plans to create a nationwide smart transport network by 2023 with an integrated ticketing system that will work across the country.
During a recent conference on sustainability in Istanbul, Lütfi Elvan, Turkey’s Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communication Minister, said that the Government’s priority was to implement an ‘intelligent transport system’ that will ‘create a structure for all modes of transport.’
At present, transport in Turkey’s cities and towns runs independently with citizens unable to purchase a universal ticket, or use a ticket from one city in another.
‘Each municipality has a smart ticketing system,’ said Elvan, ‘but when you purchase a smart card or ticket in Istanbul, it does not work in Ankara. If you buy a smart card in Ankara, it does not work in Antalya, Istanbul or Izmir.
‘I would like to see the use of a single card nationwide, so that when you come to Turkey, one card is working on all systems,’ he said.
