The 4.5-hour journey will be reduced to 1.5 hours! The long-awaited project by the local community is nearing completion.

20.12.2025 14:51

The first phase of the Halkalı-Kapıkule Railway Project, the 153-kilometer Çerkezköy-Kapıkule line, is nearing completion. After the tests are completed, the line is planned to be put into service in 2026; when the project is completed, the travel time between Edirne and Istanbul will be reduced to approximately 1.5 hours.

The Halkalı-Kapıkule Railway Project, which will provide high-standard railway connections between Turkey and European countries, has reached the final stages of construction for the first phase, the 153-kilometer Çerkezköy-Kapıkule line.

FIRST PHASE TO BE OPERATIONAL IN 2026

With the completion of the ongoing testing works on the line between Çerkezköy district of Tekirdağ and Kapıkule Border Gate, the first phase of the project will start operating in 2026. Edirne Governor Yunus Sezer conducted an inspection in the project area where construction works are being carried out meticulously. Sezer visited the completed and under-construction train stations and terminal buildings and received information about the works. In his statement, Sezer noted that the first phase works are nearing completion.

THANKS TO MINISTER URALOĞLU

Emphasizing that the new and modern face of the train stations and terminal buildings will provide citizens with more comfortable transportation services, Sezer stated: "The works on the railway line between Çerkezköy and Kapıkule are nearing completion. Tests of the signaling systems are being conducted. The rough construction of the Edirne terminal building will be completed in January, and hopefully, it will be finished by June. The terminal building in Kapıkule is completed, and the construction of the locomotive maintenance building is ongoing. Thus, the Edirne line will be completed. We express our gratitude to all ministry officials, especially to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, for their support of this valuable project."

EDİRNE-ISTANBUL WILL BE REDUCED TO 1.5 HOURS

The Halkalı-Kapıkule Railway Project, which will provide high-standard railway connections between Turkey and European countries, consists of three phases: the 153-kilometer Kapıkule-Çerkezköy, the 67-kilometer Çerkezköy-Ispartakule, and the 8.4-kilometer Ispartakule-Halkalı.