09.10.2026 18:30
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan took the driver's seat and drove the train after the opening ceremony of the Çerkezköy-Kapıkule High-Speed Train Line held in Kırklareli. President Erdoğan, who traveled by train from Babaeski to Lüleburgaz, announced that with the new line, the journey between Halkalı and Kapıkule would decrease from 4 hours to 1 hour and 30 minutes.
President Erdoğan experienced a striking moment at the opening of the Çerkezköy-Kapıkule High-Speed Train Line. After the ceremony, President Erdoğan went to the driver's cab and, sitting in the driver's seat, drove the train from Babaeski toward Lüleburgaz.
PRESIDENT ERDOĞAN SAT IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT AND DROVE THE TRAIN
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the opening ceremony of the Çerkezköy-Kapıkule High-Speed Train Line held in Kırklareli. President Erdoğan, who made statements about railway investments at the ceremony, traveled by train after the program. President Erdoğan went to the driver's cab of the train departing from Babaeski to Lüleburgaz, took over the controls, and drove the train. The images of the President in the driver's seat were among the striking moments of the opening ceremony.
BETWEEN HALKALI AND KAPIKULE TO DROP TO 1 HOUR 30 MINUTES
President Erdoğan said in his speech at the opening that the Halkalı-Kapıkule High-Speed Train Line has a total length of 229 kilometers. The 153-kilometer Çerkezköy-Kapıkule section, the longest part of the three-stage project, was opened for service. The line, built to accommodate speeds of 200 kilometers per hour, has a double-track, electrified, and signaled infrastructure. President Erdoğan described the project's impact on travel times with these words: "First of all, the passenger travel time between Halkalı and Kapıkule will drop from 4 hours to 1 hour 30 minutes. The freight transport time will decrease from 8 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours 30 minutes."
PASSENGER CAPACITY TO RISE TO 3 MILLION
With the new railway line, an increase in capacity in passenger and freight transport is aimed for. According to the figures announced by President Erdoğan, annual passenger capacity will rise from 600,000 to 3 million, and annual freight transport capacity from 1.5 million tons to 9.5 million tons.