The Transportation, Maritime and Communications Research Center (UDHAM) and the Anatolian Rail Transportation Systems Cluster (ARUS) Collaboration Summit, an R&D Meeting for Rail Systems, was held at OSTİM with the participation of the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure of the Republic of Turkey, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu.
“We paved the way for the private sector”
Turkish Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu reminded that they have considered railways as a state policy since 2002 and identified it as a priority sector.
Uraloğlu emphasized that under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, they have treated railways as a state policy since 2002, stating, “We increased our railway length from approximately 11,000 kilometers in 2003 to 13,919 kilometers, with 2,250 kilometers of this being High-Speed Rail and Rapid Transit lines. We made Turkey the 6th largest high-speed rail operator in Europe and the 8th largest in the world. While developing our railway transportation network, another goal was to follow global developments and develop our domestic railway and rail transportation systems industry equipped with new technologies. Thank God, we made all the necessary legal arrangements that could be done by the state and paved the way for the private sector.”
“We have completed the design work for the National Electric High-Speed Train Project”
Uraloğlu noted that they have transformed TÜRASAŞ, an affiliated organization of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, into one of the largest rail system vehicle manufacturers in the Middle East, stating, “To date, we are producing our own main, critical, and sub-products such as new generation locomotives, diesel and electric train sets, passenger and freight wagons, traction converters and motors, and Train Control Management Systems, all in accordance with international standards. Last year, we also put our first national and domestically produced electric train sets into service. Three of our sets, which we named Yeni Sakarya and which have a speed of 160 kilometers per hour, are currently transporting passengers between Adapazarı and Gebze. We also launched our domestically produced driverless metro vehicle, manufactured with a 70% localization rate. We have started using the first domestically produced metro signaling systems. We have also completed the design work for the National Electric High-Speed Train Set Project, which has a speed of 225 kilometers per hour, and are continuing with manufacturing preparations. We are also continuing test studies and certification studies for the Eskişehir 5000 National Electric Mainline Locomotive Project.”
“We will complete the first set of the National Suburban Train Project by the end of this year.”
Minister Uraloğlu also noted that they are continuing mass production efforts for the 95 locomotives ordered for TCDD Transportation, stating, “We will complete the first set of the National Suburban Train Set Project, whose production and assembly phases are ongoing, by the end of this year. We will use this set in Gaziray in Gaziantep, which is the fourth suburban rail operation in our country after İZBAN, Marmaray and Başkentray. KARDEMİR produces high-speed train rails to international standards with the support of TCDD. Furthermore, we also produce monoblock train wheels within KARDEMİR.”
UDHAM will support rail system research.
Minister Uraloğlu stated that they have entered a new era that will accelerate their work with more projects, saying, “Article 40 of the Decree Law No. 655, which defines the organization and duties of our ministry and was published in the Official Gazette on July 9, 2024, has been expanded to include rail systems. Our ministry's R&D support provider, UDHAM, could previously only provide support for research related to electronic communication, aviation, and space technologies. With the addition of the phrases 'Rail Systems and Maritime Technologies' to this legislation, the way has been paved for providing support to these sectors as well. The aim of our summit, organized in cooperation with UDHAM and ARUS, is to guide the future of rail system R&D projects in our country and to ensure strategic collaborations.”
UDHAM has provided over 34 million Turkish Lira in R&D support funds to 5 projects.
Uraloğlu, recalling that they have provided over 34 million Turkish Lira in R&D support funds to 5 separate projects on communication systems specifically for railways through UDHAM, stated, “Now, we will be able to provide support for the development of domestic and national technology for every element related to rail systems, from bogies to wheel sets, from locomotives to wagons, from engines to bearings. Now, thanks to the R&D support provided by our Ministry, I believe that our rail system companies will achieve much more successful and innovative works, expand their production ranges, take a leading position in the international arena, and that we will no longer have to talk about imports in the railway sector.”
The global railway vehicle market is worth €63.3 billion.
Uraloğlu, highlighting that according to the global railway market report published this year by the Union of European Railway Industries (UNIFE), the size of the railway vehicle market has reached 63.3 billion euros, said: “Today, we generate approximately 1 billion dollars in revenue annually from both the railway infrastructure projects undertaken abroad by our contractors and the products exported by our rail system vehicle manufacturers. I believe this is not enough for us and that we have the capacity to earn much larger amounts. We must work to gain a larger share of the railway vehicle market, which is worth over 63 billion euros. We must expand our goals in the railway industry and broaden the boundaries of our dreams even further.”
“We will improve our railway infrastructure along a 2,094-kilometer route.”
Minister Uraloğlu, also providing information about the Development Route, stated that they will provide uninterrupted transportation to every country in Europe via road and rail from the FAV Port built in Iraq to London. He further stated that they will develop the railway infrastructure along the 2,094-kilometer route extending from Ovaköy to Edirne, and continued as follows:
“We see a huge opportunity here for the development of our railway industry and market. At this point, with the implementation of the Development Route, one of our most important goals is for the new train sets that will be used by the companies operating on this corridor to be manufactured domestically by our country's firms. We will have a visit to Baghdad tomorrow. We are making a very serious effort to first build the railway; then to have the train sets that will run on the railway manufactured in our country and to have their operation carried out by us. Turkish companies have already shown what they can achieve when given the opportunity, through the projects, products, and works they have implemented to date.”
OSTİM Organized Industrial Zone Chairman Orhan Aydın pointed out that ARUS was established with a focus on domestic and national production in rail systems. Chairman Aydın emphasized the importance of the support provided by the Ministry to the sector, noting that domestic and national production can be realized in all critical sectors through a clustering approach.
At the opening of the program, TCDD General Manager and ARUS Board Chairman Veysi Kurt and UDHAM President Selami Yazıcı provided information about the rail systems sector and support programs. ARUS Coordinator Dr. İlhami Pektaş explained ARUS's activities.
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