İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

(Smyrna) is

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

's third largest city and most important port in

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

. In the past, İzmir had the second largest tram system in Turkey. Trams operated between 1890 and the early 1960s.Ömer Tolga Sümerli
- The history of Alsancak terminal. The İzmir Municipality has been operating a new, larger tram system in the city since 2017. This new system is integrated with the

İzmir Metro The İzmir Metro () is a Medium-capacity rail system, light metro system serving the city of İzmir, Turkey. The current system, consisting of M1 (İzmir Metro), one line, starts from Narlıdere Kaymakamlık station in the southwestern portion of ...

and the regional commuter system,

İZBAN İZBAN, previously known as Egeray, is a commuter rail system serving İzmir and its metropolitan area. Averaging a daily ridership of 185,000 passengers, it is the busiest commuter rail system in Turkey, slightly ahead of the Marmaray commuter ...

History

The first tram line in İzmir opened in 1890, between

Alsancak Terminal Alsancak railway station () is one of the two main railway terminals in İzmir and is the second-oldest railway station in Turkey, after Kemer, being completed in 1858. This line also saw horse-drawn trams carry railway passengers from Pasaport (near the city center), to Alsancak station. In 1901, this line was extended to the newly built

İzmir Clock Tower İzmir Clock Tower () is a historic clock tower located at the Konak Square in the Konak district of İzmir, Turkey. It is considered as the main landmark of the city. History Kâmil Pasha, the then-Governor of Aidin Vilayet, held a meeting w ...

in Konak (the city center). The second line to open was in

Karşıyaka Karşıyaka () is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 51 km2, and its population is 346,264 (2022). The district extends for twelve kilometres along the northern and eastern coastline of the tip of the Gulf of ...

, in 1906, from the Karşıyaka pier to the Karşıyaka railway station. In 1907, two more lines were completed in Karşıyaka: Karşıyaka pier-Alaybey and Karşıyaka pier-Bostanlı.Karşıyaka Dergisi
- A full history of trams in Karşıyaka and planned future lines. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

(1914–1918), the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

collapsed and the

Turkish Republic Turkish Republic may refer to: * Turkey, archaically the "Turkish Republic" * Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the ...

was formed. The trams were electrified in 1927, as well as the opening of the Konak-Reşadiye (Güzelyalı) line. New pink painted trams began service and between 1927 and 1939, İzmir trams were at their peak. With the rise of the automobile, busses were becoming more popular and the inevitable decline of İzmir's trams began. The first lines to be discontinued were the 3 lines in Karşıyaka. On October 1, 1939, the Karşıyaka Municipality took up all tramlines in Karşıyaka. The Konak-Reşadiye line was abandoned in 1950, leaving the Konak-Alsancak line the last tram line in İzmir. The Alsancak-Pasaport portion was abandoned in 1956 and the last remaining line in İzmir (Konak-Pasaport) was taken up in the early 1960s. Ever since, İzmir has been without tramways. Some tram lines were converted to

trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...

es. The Nostalgic Tram operated between Alsancak Harbor viaducts and Cumhuriyet Square. It began operation on 9 September 2020, with the first nostalgic tram, Boyoz. The second tram, Çiğdem, started to service on 11 November 2020. The third tram, Gevrek, is planned to start service soon. All of the trams were rubber-wheeled, and they were the first rubber wheeled trams since 1954. Due to insufficient demand, the line was decommissioned on May 28, 2024.

Today

Tram İzmir

In April 2017, the

Karşıyaka Tram Karşıyaka () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 51 km2, and its population is 346,264 (2022). The district extends for twelve kilometres along the northern and eastern coastline of th ...

went in service on a line of with 15 stations between Alaybey and Ataşehir Kavşağı. By March 2018, the -long

Konak Tram Konak may refer to: Turkey * Konak (residence), a name for a house in Turkey and territories of the former Ottoman Empire * Konak, Baklan * Konak, Eğil * Konak, Hakkari, Turkey * Konak, İzmir, a district of İzmir Province, Turkey * Konak (İzm ...

line with 19 stations between Fahrettin Altay Square-Konak- Halkapınar have begun operation.In January 2024, the Çiğli Tram went in service on a line of with 14 stations between Ataşehir Kavşağı-Ataşehir Kavşağı (Ring).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trams in Izmir Tram transport in İzmir Rail transport in the Ottoman Empire

History

Today

Tram İzmir

See also

References