Sirkeci Station

Side entrance to the station

Sirkeci ( tour: Sirkeci Garı ) - Turkish Railway Station (TCDD) in Sirkeci , on the European side of Istanbul . It was built as the final destination for the Orient Express . Currently, from the Sirkeci station, domestic and international transport is carried out in a westerly direction.

As of the beginning of 2015, the railway line from Sirkeci station is not functioning due to its reconstruction for further inclusion in the Marmaray project on the section from Kazlycheshme to Halkala. The fate of the “head” section from Sirkeci station to Kazlycheshme, which is not part of Marmaray (with stopping points Dzhankurtaran, Kumkapi, Yenikapi), is still unknown. The line is not dismantled, stopping points are closed.

Content

1 History
2 Station building
3 International lines
4 Orient Express
5 Public transport departing from Sirkeci
6 See also
7 References

History

After the Crimean War, the government of the Ottoman Empire decided to build a railway linking Istanbul with Europe. The first contract was signed with Labro, a British MP, in January 1857 . The contract was broken three months later, as Labro was unable to secure the necessary investment capital. A similar second and third contract, signed with British and Belgian entrepreneurs in 1860 and 1868 , were equally ineffective. On April 17, 1869, a concession agreement was signed for the construction of the Rumeli Railway with Baron Moritz Freiherr Hirsch auf Gereuth, a Belgian banker of Bavarian origin. The project involved the construction of a railway line from Istanbul through Edirne , Plovdiv and Sarajevo to the banks of the Sava . The construction of the first 15 kilometers from Istanbul to Halkali began on July 4, 1870 , and was completed on January 4, 1871 . The construction of the starting point of the line in Sirkeci was due to the fact that Yeshilkoy , originally chosen for this role, was located too far from Eminenu , the main business center of that era. The possibility was supposed to create branches on the line from Beyazit to the shore of the Golden Horn . Sultan Abdul-Aziz allowed to lay railway tracks along the shores of the Sea of Marmara , near the walls of the lower garden of Topkapi Palace . The construction of this branch was completed on July 21, 1872 . In 1873 a “temporary” station was built in Sirkeci.

Station Building

Passenger platform

The construction of the new station building began on February 11, 1888 . The station, which was first called "Muhir Ahmet Pasha Station", opened on November 3, 1890 , replacing the temporary building. The author of the project was August Jahmund , a Prussian architect who lectured at the Istanbul Polytechnic School (now Istanbul Technical University ). The station building, with an area of 1,200 m², is one of the most famous examples of European Orientalism , which influenced the work of other architects. The building was equipped with the latest technology of the time, illuminated and heated with gas. The station restaurant became a meeting place for journalists, writers and other cultural and art workers in the 1950s and 1960s. This restaurant, now called the Orient Express, is a popular tourist destination. The station building was never rebuilt and retained its original appearance, but the area around the station has changed a lot since 1890.

International lines

The station is the main hub connecting the network of Turkish railways with the rest of Europe. There are two main lines from Sirkeci Station. One of them connects Istanbul with the Greek Thessaloniki , the other with Bucharest . The Bosphorus Express operates daily flights between Sirkeci and Gara de Nord in Bucharest . Communication with Sofia , Belgrade , Budapest and Chisinau is carried out using wagons attached to the Bosphorus Express.

Orient Express

On October 4, 1883, the Orient Express first set off from the Gare de l'Est station in Paris to the music of Mozart's “Alla Turca”. This train was a project of the Belgian businessman . Its route ran through Strasbourg , Karlsruhe , Stuttgart , Ulm , Munich , Vienna , Budapest , Bucharest , Ruse , Varna and ended in Sirkeci. Over 80 hours of travel, the train covered a distance of 3,094 km. The Orient Express, whose passengers were kings, princes and presidents, ceased to exist on May 19, 1977 due to difficulties in crossing the borders of the Iron Curtain countries. The famous train was revived in 1982 by an American businessman and follows various routes that include London and Venice , but without the same scope.

Public Transportation Departing from Sirkeci

Suburban train Sirkeci - Halkali (as of January 2015 the line is closed for reconstruction)
Several bus routes
T1 Kabatash - Bagjilar Tram Line
Sirkeci Kabatas Ferry
Sea bus Sirkeci - Bostanji - Adalar
Sirkeci Car Ferry - Harem
Sirkeci Train Station - Khaidarpash Station
The line of the Marmaray project connecting the European and Asian coasts of the city.