The second phase of Istanbul-Ankara high speed line, Eskisehir-Istanbul is going to be opened with a ceremony with the participation of Prime Minister Erdogan on 25th of July in Pendik.

The opening of the high speed line connecting Istanbul to Eskisehir, Ankara and Konya had been postponed several times. The opening had been first announced by Prime Minister Erdogan and then by Mayor of Pendik via twitter.

The commercial speed of Ankara-Istanbul high speed train will be 250 km/h. Travelling time is 3 hours. However, since the construction is not completed, trains will have to use conventional line in some part of the line. Thus, the trip from Ankara to Istanbul (Pendik) is expected to last more than 4 hours.

The high speed train will depart from Pendik in Istanbul, and will reach to Ankara using Gebze, Izmit, Sapanca, Pamukova, Bilecik, Bozuyuk, Eskisehir and Polatli stations on way. During the temporary usage of conventional line, Arifiye will be used instead of Sapanca.

The ridership is expected to reach to 50k/day and 17 million/year after the completion of project. By then, the market share will reach to 78%.