The T1, officially referred to as the T1 Kabataş–Bağcılar tram line () is a

tram A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

line of the Istanbul Tram, operated by

Metro Istanbul Metro İstanbul is a public rail transport operator headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey. Established in 1988, the company is responsible for operating most of Istanbul's rail systems, including the Istanbul Metro, Istanbul Tram, funiculars and ae ...

. It runs from Kabataş to

Bağcılar Bağcılar is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 23 km2, and its population is 740,069 (2022). It is located on the East Thrace, European side of Istanbul, near the ...

via

Eminönü Eminönü, historically known as Pérama, is a predominantly commercial waterfront area of Istanbul within the Fatih district near the confluence of the Golden Horn with the southern entrance of the Bosphorus strait and the Sea of Marmara. It is l ...

, with a total length of .

History

The first section of the T1 opened between Aksaray and Beyazıt on 13 June 1992 and was later extended first to Topkapı and Zeytinburnu, and later to Eminönü. On 29 June 2006, the Eminönü–Kabataş extension was opened, making the transfer to Kabataş–Taksim funicular possible. On 3 February 2011, the T1 merged with the T2 which opened in 2006 between Zeytinburnu and Bağcılar, with the T2's stations being converted to low-floor.

Rolling stock

At the time of opening in 1992, the T1 used high-floor trams manufactured by

ABB ABB Group is a Swedish-Swiss multinational electrical engineering corporation. Incorporated in Switzerland as ABB Ltd., and headquartered in Zurich, it is dual-listed on the Nasdaq Nordic exchange in Stockholm, Sweden, and the SIX Swiss Excha ...

. These have subsequently been replaced by two types of low-floor tram, which are currently in use on the line. Both types are air conditioned and usually run in coupled pairs.

Bombardier Flexity Swift A32

In 2001, the Istanbul Transport Authority placed an order for 55 Bombardier Flexity Swift A32 trams. They entered service in 2003, once the platforms on the line had been lowered to accommodate low-floor trams. They have a top speed of 70 km/h, a total of 64 seats + 10 tip-up seats, and a maximum capacity of 272 passengers.

Alstom Citadis X04

In 2007, 37

Alstom Citadis The Alstom Citadis is a family of low-floor trams and light rail vehicles built by Alstom. , over 2,300 Citadis trams have been sold and 1,800 tramways are in revenue service throughout the world, with operations in all six inhabited continents ...

X04 trams were ordered to replace the high-floor trams running on the T2 Zeytinburnu-Bağcılar line, in anticipation of the merger of the T1 and T2 lines and the conversion of the former T2 line platforms to low-floor height. The first tram was delivered in September 2009, and following testing the trams entered service in 2011. They also have a top speed of 70 km/h, and a maximum capacity of up to 500 passengers as a coupled pair.

Stations

Planned extensions

In 2022 a special service for cruise passengers was announced which would run for cruise passengers from a new infill stop in Galataport (south of Kabataş station) and run to the Beyazıt station, providing visitors easy access to the Grand Bazaar at that stop as well as the rest of Sultanahmet, Istanbul's Old City. Metro line M7 is being extended southeastward to

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

and Kabataş, which will provide T1 passengers much easier access to

Şişli Şişli () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 10 km2, and its population is 276,528 (2022). Located on the European side of the city, it is bordered by Beşiktaş ...

and other parts of the

Istanbul Central Business District Istanbul's Central Business District as the real estate industry refers to it, is ''not'' the historic city center, but a 7-km-long north–south corridor of modern areas mostly along Barbaros Boulevard and Büyükdere Avenue. As of late 2021, 33% ...

References

{{Public Transport in İstanbul Tram transport in Istanbul Beyoğlu Fatih Zeytinburnu Bakırköy Güngören Bağcılar