A 192-kilometer section of a motorway that reduces the drive from Istanbul to Izmir from 8.5 hours to 3.5 hours has been inaugurated at a ceremony attended by President Erdoğan. Pointing out that Osmangazi Bridge was the backbone of the project, Mehmet Cahit Turhan, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, stated that the motorway would cut the travel time between Istanbul and Izmir from 8–9 hours to 3.5 hours.
With a total length of 426 kilometers, including access roads, the investment cost of the project was $11 billion, including funding cost, Turhan said. “This is the first motorway project to be awarded as a build-operate-transfer model in our country. The project has another interesting aspect: It has been completed by six Turkish firms, with Nurol as the consortium leader, requiring hi-tech, innovative applications, and advanced manufacturing techniques.”