Kanal Istanbul is a waterway project designed to extend Istanbul from the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea on the European side. Although its counterparts have been proposed in the past. The Canal Istanbul project has been spoken for many years and many comments have been made on it. Kanal Istanbul, which was introduced to Istanbul as the "Crazy Project" at the Haliç Congress Center in 2011 by Prime Minister Erdoğan; It includes the Avcılar, Küçükçekmece, Sazlıdere and Durusu corridors.
The Kanal Istanbul route starts from the neck that separates the Sea of Marmara from Küçükçekmece Lake. The project, which continues from Sazlıdere and Altınşehir districts, will progress along the Sazlıdere Catchment. It will reach the Black Sea on the edge of the Terkos and Durusu districts. The size of the area is planned to be within the boundaries of Arnavutköy 28.6 km, Küçükçekmece 7 km, Başakşehir 6.5 km, Avcılar 3.1 km.
Canal Istanbul, officially known, will come to life on the European Side of the city. It will assume the duty of being an artificial waterway between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea in order to relieve the traffic of ships in the Bosphorus, which is an alternative gateway between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. At the point where the canal meets the Sea of Marmara, one of the two new cities planned to be established by 2023. The length of the canal is 45 km; its width will be 145-150 m at the surface and approximately 125 m at the base. The depth of the water will be 25 m. With this channel, the Bosphorus will be completely closed to tanker traffic, and two new peninsulas and a new island will be created in Istanbul. The project will also be linked with railways and the Istanbul International Airport.
Economic aspect of Kanal Istanbul project: Capacity of safe passage through the Bosphorus is 25,000 ships. The number of ships passing now is constantly increasing or the amount of tons is increasing. According to the projections, this number will be 78,000 in 2050. The capacity of the channel is 68,000 ships, one-way. When the number of ships increases from 20,000 to 75,000, the waiting time will increase. The waiting cost of a ship over 80,000 tons is $ 120,000. Even if 80.000 dollars of passage fee is taken from these ships, 6-7 billion dollars of annual income will be obtained only from here.
3.2 Billion Turkish Lira savings annually: The canal will save 3.2 billion liras annually.
Canal Istanbul and Bosphorus security: The Canal Istanbul Project can prevent accidents, the dangers posed by ships which are carrying chemicals, and hitting the mansions in the Bosphorus. In addition, since the safe passage capacity is 25.000 ships, security problems will be solved.
Environmental destruction and Carbon emissions will decrease: Ships passing through the Bosphorus increase carbon dioxide emissions in the historical peninsula, causing damage to historical buildings. With Canal Istanbul, this emission will decrease in the historical peninsula.
50,000 new homes against potential earthquakes: A big earthquake is expected in Istanbul and thanks to new buildings on the canal route, a certain population will be moved from this risky area to this channel. There is no fault line under the channel.
Sea transportation and marinas will increase in Istanbul: Commercial ships on the Bosphorus are blocking the sea transportation in Istanbul. If this traffic disappears or decreases, the share of sea transportation will increase with the opening of the new channel. New marinas will be built in Istanbul.
Where will the Kanal Istanbul route and where will it pass?
The route of the project, which includes an artificial waterway; according to the latest plan, with a length of 45.2 km, it includes between Avcılar, Küçükçekmece, Sazlıdere and Durusu, and starts from Küçükçekmece lake.The Kanal Istanbul route starts from the neck that separates the Sea of Marmara from Küçükçekmece Lake. The project, which continues from Sazlıdere and Altınşehir districts, will progress along the Sazlıdere Catchment. It will reach the Black Sea on the edge of the Terkos and Durusu districts. The size of the area is planned to be within the boundaries of Arnavutköy 28.6 km, Küçükçekmece 7 km, Başakşehir 6.5 km, Avcılar 3.1 km.
Why Is Kanal Istanbul needed?
During the Montreux Straits Treaty, signed in 1936, 3 thousand ships were passing through the Bosphorus annually. However, this number has increased gradually over the years. The triggering of the project was the increase in Bosphorus traffic and the start of alternative searches for freight ships crossing routes and planning. Currently, the number of ships reaching 50 thousand annually pass through the Bosphorus. This number is expected to reach 100 thousand by 2050. It uses 2500 fish strait with daily fishing and city lines. Annually 17 thousand ships pass through the Suez Canal. Of course, comparing due to geographies may not yield very healthy results, but there is a big difference in terms of situation.What are The Kanal Istanbul project details and history?
The Canal Istanbul project dates back to the Roman Empire as of history. The reason for this is the attempts and ideas of an alternative waterway to the Bosphorus. It was also brought to the agenda during the Suleyman the Magnificent in 1550. In the recent past, he was mentioned in the Scientific and Technical Journal of Tübitak in 1990 with the article "I Think of the Istanbul Canal" by Yüksel Önem, the Consultant of the Ministry of Energy of that time.Canal Istanbul, officially known, will come to life on the European Side of the city. It will assume the duty of being an artificial waterway between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea in order to relieve the traffic of ships in the Bosphorus, which is an alternative gateway between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. At the point where the canal meets the Sea of Marmara, one of the two new cities planned to be established by 2023. The length of the canal is 45 km; its width will be 145-150 m at the surface and approximately 125 m at the base. The depth of the water will be 25 m. With this channel, the Bosphorus will be completely closed to tanker traffic, and two new peninsulas and a new island will be created in Istanbul. The project will also be linked with railways and the Istanbul International Airport.
Real estate value of the areas where The Kanal Istanbul Project is located has increased!
There will be areas to be expropriated and emptied in the areas where the project will be constructed. Şahintepesi, which has the highest number of people among these areas, comes first with 35 thousand people. It is planned to make many constructions and various projects to the places near the project other than the expropriated areas. It is also among the agenda items that the limitation of structure will be introduced. For these reasons, it is of course expected that real estate values will fly in these regions. While the real estate values of Arnavutköy increased by 50% in 2018, there was a 20% increase in Başakşehir in the last year for 2019.What is the final situation in Kanal Istanbul? When will it start?
As of February 2018, Kanal Istanbul works are continuing rapidly. President Erdogan called on the Italian to participate in this project with the call of a consortium during his businessmen meeting on 7 February 2018 in Rome. While the drilling works were being completed, the tender process of the project has started to begin. After the tender process, preparatory work before the construction of the canal will take approximately 1.5 years. Channel construction is expected to take 5.5 years. The completion time of the project is planned as 7 years. President Erdoğan announced that the relevant tenders will be held in the near future.The Benefits Of Kanal Istanbul Project
Kanal Istanbul will contribute to issues such as bosphorus security, economy and environment. Let's start from there, since the most interesting aspect will be the material aspect.Economic aspect of Kanal Istanbul project: Capacity of safe passage through the Bosphorus is 25,000 ships. The number of ships passing now is constantly increasing or the amount of tons is increasing. According to the projections, this number will be 78,000 in 2050. The capacity of the channel is 68,000 ships, one-way. When the number of ships increases from 20,000 to 75,000, the waiting time will increase. The waiting cost of a ship over 80,000 tons is $ 120,000. Even if 80.000 dollars of passage fee is taken from these ships, 6-7 billion dollars of annual income will be obtained only from here.
3.2 Billion Turkish Lira savings annually: The canal will save 3.2 billion liras annually.
Canal Istanbul and Bosphorus security: The Canal Istanbul Project can prevent accidents, the dangers posed by ships which are carrying chemicals, and hitting the mansions in the Bosphorus. In addition, since the safe passage capacity is 25.000 ships, security problems will be solved.
Environmental destruction and Carbon emissions will decrease: Ships passing through the Bosphorus increase carbon dioxide emissions in the historical peninsula, causing damage to historical buildings. With Canal Istanbul, this emission will decrease in the historical peninsula.
50,000 new homes against potential earthquakes: A big earthquake is expected in Istanbul and thanks to new buildings on the canal route, a certain population will be moved from this risky area to this channel. There is no fault line under the channel.
Sea transportation and marinas will increase in Istanbul: Commercial ships on the Bosphorus are blocking the sea transportation in Istanbul. If this traffic disappears or decreases, the share of sea transportation will increase with the opening of the new channel. New marinas will be built in Istanbul.