New law coming for public transport

Adil Karaismailoğlu, Chairman of the Turkish Grand National Assembly's Committee on Public Works, Reconstruction, Transport and Tourism and AKP Trabzon MP, made statements regarding the committee's work.

Explaining that the committee, which covers the public works, reconstruction, transport, and tourism sectors, has very important agendas for the development of life, Karaismailoğlu stated that he aims to produce legal solutions to the problems he experienced in the field during his time at the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure.

Karaismailoğlu said, "After the urban transformation law, hopefully in the near future, our work is currently ongoing, we will have a study regarding public transport."

Adil Karaismailoğlu pointed out that public transport is one of the most important problems of metropolitan cities, especially Istanbul, and that the less time spent in public transport during the day, the more time people can spend with their loved ones.

Emphasizing that reducing traffic congestion in cities can be possible with quality, safe, and economical public transport, Karaismailoğlu stated, "In metropolitan cities like Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir, the first leg of this is subways, trams, and rail systems. We need to finish our rail system investments as soon as possible in places where the feasibility is appropriate. There is currently 340 kilometers of rail system line in Istanbul, but there are ongoing rail system investments. Our Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure is making very important contributions in Istanbul. In the last year, it completed 50 kilometers of rail system investment and put it into the service of Istanbul residents; hopefully, it will finish another 50 kilometers in the coming months and put it into the service of Istanbul residents."

"WE AIM TO SOLVE THE PROBLEMS OF TRADESMEN WHO OWN PLATES"

Pointing out the importance of operating these in an integrated manner with rubber-tired vehicles after reaching sufficient kilometers for rail system lines, Karaismailoğlu said, "Especially the buses operated by our municipalities, private public buses, minibuses, and taxis must provide quality and safe service in a way that ensures both customer and driver satisfaction within the framework of certain rules and regulations. We are working in our committee to establish the infrastructure for this. Taxis, minibuses, and private public buses also have demands regarding ownership. A study is also ongoing to protect the rights of our citizens and tradesmen who have been doing this job for years."

Explaining that minibuses, buses, and taxis can provide public transport services with commercial plates and line allocation, Karaismailoğlu expressed that they aim to solve the ownership problem experienced by tradesmen who own plates in the current situation.

Karaismailoğlu continued his words as follows:

"Some of our municipalities attempted to hold new tenders over our vehicles that were working as if it were their own duty, even though they did not have the authority. Of course, this worried our tradesmen. There is a study to regulate this. We have started a study that will eliminate the problems and anxieties of our taxi, minibus, and bus tradesmen regarding the ownership of the work they do. Actually, we had prepared this before the May 14 elections, but it was not finished. When we make the final touches here and bring this to Parliament by working together with the tradesmen, associations, and institutions, our tradesmen will be relieved and will provide quality service. As a result, the satisfaction of our citizens will increase because they receive quality service."

Stating that if public transport is of high quality and safe, citizens will not use their personal vehicles, and this will produce a solution to the traffic problem, Karaismailoğlu said that on the other hand, they continue their negotiations for work on rail systems.

"THE RATE OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT USE BY THE WEALTHY IS A MEASURE OF DEVELOPMENT LEVEL"

Committee Chairman Adil Karaismailoğlu stated that the way to eliminate traffic congestion in Istanbul is public transport, and this can be possible with rail systems, and assessed, "The average travel time in Istanbul today is 1 hour. If you do not make these investments, this will increase to 2 hours a year later. Think about the return of this, 4 hours. Can you imagine the state of mind of a person who has spent 4 hours in traffic at home? The way to make life easier and add comfort and safety to the city is to develop public transport."

TARGETED IBB

Pointing out that there are 6 thousand buses in Istanbul and that there is no such large fleet in the world, Karaismailoğlu stated that daily, weekly, and monthly maintenance must be done for the healthy operation of this fleet, otherwise it will cause traffic congestion by remaining on the road as it is today. Stating that the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality cannot provide sufficient service in this regard and that the metro constructions under the responsibility of the municipality are not continuing, Karaismailoğlu noted that the citizens will reveal their appreciation for this situation in the local elections.

Touching on the calendar regarding the submission of the legal regulation on public transport to Parliament, Adil Karaismailoğlu said, "The proposal may come before the local elections because our private transporters and tradesmen are waiting. We will hopefully bring it in a short time to ensure that they get the return for the work they do and to eliminate their anxieties."

Drawing attention to the importance of the rate of public transport use by the wealthy in measuring the development level of countries, Karaismailoğlu said, "The higher that is, the more you can understand that life is easier, safer, and more economical there. Hopefully, we will do whatever is necessary in the Turkish Grand National Assembly to develop these."