Findings of IETT Survey Likely to Encourage Public Transport Use in İstanbul

İSTANBUL, 2015-05-29 Using public transportation vehicles saves İstanbulites both money and time while it reduces carbon emissions, results of the latest İETT survey have shown.

The number of people using public transportation in İstanbul has doubled over the past five years. Launch of new metro lines in addition to Marmaray (undersea tube) and Metrobus (bus rapid transit) projects have prompted İstanbul residents to mostly use public transportation rather than their private vehicles.

The latest İETT survey has revealed the reasons behind the İstanbulites’ increasing use of public transportation. The first reason behind the growing use of public transportation in İstanbul is because it helps people save both money and time. According to İETT calculations, the cost of using a public transportation vehicle in many destinations is very much lower than the cost of using a private car.

For instance, a person in Kartal district on the Anatolian side of İstanbul can go to the Atatürk Airport on the European side of İstanbul and return back home by public transportation vehicles spending only TL9.20. Another person who covers the same distance by a private vehicle spends TL63.67. The cost difference between using public transportation and private vehicle is TL54.47 while time difference between the two journeys is 110 minutes.

For those who want to save time and money, the cost and time difference between using public transportation and private vehicles in selected destinations are as follows:

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION 6-7 TIMES CHEAPER

(*) Cost of travelling comparisons is for round trips in the selected destinations.

Public: By public transportation vehicles

Private: By private vehicles

IT IS SIX TIMES QUICKER TO TAKE PUBLIC TRANSPORT

According to these figures, taking public transport is 6-7 times cheaper than travelling by private vehicle. Public transportation vehicles provide an average of 40 percent time saving when compared to travelling by private vehicles, making passengers reach their destinations earlier. During rush hour, using public transport is six times quicker.

For those who say, “How much time I spend on transportation is not important for me, I just care about the cost,” the cost of public transportation gets lower with fewer transfers between the stations and without the use of express lines. For instance, it is possible to pay TL9.5 instead of TL11.9 for a round trip between Yenibosna and Sarıyer and TL9.5 instead of TL12.20 for a round trip between Eminönü and Sabiha Gökçen Airport without transfers between stations and use of express lines. In brief, even use of public transportation vehicles from which passengers have to make transfers between stations costs less than travelling by private cars.

In addition, use of Mavi Kart (a monthly public transport card) reduces the cost of public transportation further. The total cost of Mavi Kart is TL170 while a single ride with this card costs 94 kuruş. The cost of monthly discounted public transport card, İstanbulkart, is TL77 and a single ride with this card has a cost of 38 kuruş. While a passenger who owns a Mavi Kart spends TL5.64 for a round trip between Yenibosna and Sarıyer, this figure is TL2.28 for a student who uses the discounted İstanbulkart.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT COMMUTERS OCCUPY LESS SPACE IN TRAFFIC

Considering the fact that 465 new vehicles join the traffic in İstanbul every day, the advantages of using public transportation are very much likely to increase further.

In Turkey, which has an increasing level of urbanization and growing population, city centers see the most of population density. While the number of people transported hourly on a 3.5-meter-long line in various modes of private transportation is 2.000, this figure is 20.000 by bus and 80.000 people by metro. Moreover, while 50.000 people occupy an area of 175 meters with their private vehicles in traffic, this figure is 35 meters for people using bus and nine meters for people using metro.

One liter of diesel fuel takes a commuter to a distance of 19 kilometers by private vehicle while it takes a commuter to a distance of 39 kilometers by bus and to a distance of 48 kilometers by metro. In public transportation, it is also possible to save diesel fuel with a cost of TL1.13 billion annually thanks to training on eco-driving techniques offered to drivers.

SEVEN TIMES LESS CARBON EMISSION

Another problem faced by cities with an increasingly crowded population is air pollution. Air pollution is significantly low in cities where different modes of public transportation are commonly used. The İETT survey also revealed significant information about how the use of public transport helps protect the environment.

According to İETT data, those who choose to take public transportation reduce their carbon footprint by 7-7.5 times and conserve energy by eliminating travel that would have otherwise been made in a private vehicle.

Carbon emissions for the same destinations in İstanbul are as follows:

ILICALI: PRIVATE CARS WITH A SINGLE PASSENGER OCCUPY 85 PERCENT OF ROADS

Professor Mustafa Ilıcalı, head of Bahçeşir University’s Transportation Engineering Department, who talked about the benefits of public transportation systems, said public transport makes significant contribution to the settlement of financial and environmental problems in a city and country, adding that widespread use of public transportation also helps people raise their standards in life.

Noting that people’s tendency to choose public transport increases with the growing population in cities, Ilıcalı said: “Thanks to a fast and reliable public transportation system being in place, more and more private vehicle drivers who are overwhelmed by traffic congestion on roads every day, will prefer using public transport vehicles as they see these vehicles running quickly and regularly.”

The professor said although private cars with a single passenger make up 10 percent of the vehicles in the traffic, these vehicles occupy 80-85 percent of the space on the roads. Ilıcalı also noted that while the public transportation vehicles occupy a space of around 15 percent on the roads, they carry at least 70 percent of the passengers travelling by land.

PRIVATE CARS HIGH IN NUMBER

According to Ilıcalı, the most important factor leading to traffic congestion in İstanbul is the high number of private vehicles.

“With the Metrobus system in İstanbul, which is one of the several unique examples in the world, 500 vehicles carry 1 million passengers per day while the number of passengers carried by 50.000 service buses is 2.2 million per day. Private vehicles carry 1.5 million people across İstanbul per day,” he said in further remarks.