History of rail transport in Turkey

The history of rail transport in Turkey began with the start of the placement in 1856 of a 130 kilometres (81 mi) railway line between İzmir and Aydın. The first finished^{[dubious – discuss]} Ottoman railway line was a 66 kilometres (41 mi) line between Köstence (today Constanţa, Romania) and Boğazköy (today Cernavodă, Romania) built in 1859–1860.

The state corporation that manages the Turkish railway system, Turkish State Railways, subdivides the history into the Pre-Republic period (Ottoman period), the Republic period (which extends from 1923 to 1950) and the period after 1950.^[1] During the first period, railways were built and operated by foreign concerns with permission from the state. In the second, the state took over its own railways and expanded them in support of Turkish financial interests. In the third period, attention turned from rail travel to highways, and the expansion of railways dramatically slowed.