In the lead up to the local elections on March 31, 2019, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held public meetings throughout Turkey, where he inaugurated a number of infrastructure investments and heralded new ones in the pipeline.

Addressing citizens in Zonguldak on March 4, President Erdoğan said that Port of Filyos, which will be the main export center of the entire Black Sea region, will be completed in 2023.

On March 12, President Erdoğan opened the Gebze-Halkalı suburban railway line in Istanbul. Around 1.7 million passengers will be transported daily on the line, which will signi cantly contribute to relieving Istanbul’s traf c burden.

In Ankara on March 14, President Erdoğan heralded a new railway line to be built between the district of Keçiören and Esenboğa Airport.

The North Marmara Highway was extended to the Çatalca district of Istanbul on March 16. President Erdoğan said that the project, which also encompasses the new Istanbul Airport and the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, will lower the time between Çatalca and Kurtköy to 50 minutes from 3 hours.

Speaking in Izmir on March 17, President Erdoğan acknowledged that the Istanbul – Izmir Highway Project, which will shorten the drive between the two cities from 8 hours to 3.5 hours, will be completed in 2019.

Along with all these investments, mega projects such as Canal Istanbul and the Grand Istanbul Tunnel will be built in Turkey. Almost 30 percent of Turkey’s infrastructure investment need till 2023 is expected to be made through public-private partnerships, which is the reason why international investors are maintaining a keen interest in these projects.

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