Marmaray
The railway under the Bosphorus — 76 km from Halkalı in Europe to Gebze in Asia through a tunnel 60 metres below the strait — crossing continents in four minutes from Sirkeci to Üsküdar.
Opened in October 2013 after archaeologists spent years excavating a Byzantine harbour and 37 shipwrecks at Yenikapı, Marmaray is a commuter railway that finally joined the two shores by rail. Its 1.4-km immersed-tube tunnel sits 60 metres below the Bosphorus, engineered for earthquakes, and the full line from Halkalı to Gebze stretches 76 km with 43 stations.
Stations that matter to visitors
- Sirkeci: for Sultanahmet and Eminönü, under the old Orient Express terminus.
- Yenikapı: interchange with the M2 (Taksim) and M1 (old airport, bus terminal) metro lines.
- Üsküdar: the Asian shore, the Maiden's Tower and the ferry quays.
- Ayrılık Çeşmesi: walk 10 minutes to Kadıköy market, or change to the M4 metro for Sabiha Gökçen Airport.
Fares and hours
Marmaray is the one line in Istanbul priced by distance: tap in and tap out, and the short cross-Bosphorus hop costs about the same as a metro ride. Trains run roughly 06:00–midnight every 5–15 minutes, later on some nights, and take about four minutes between Sirkeci and Üsküdar. Istanbulkart is required.
Frequently asked questions
No — it is a suburban railway run separately, but it uses the same Istanbulkart and interchanges with the metro at Yenikapı, Ayrılık Çeşmesi and other stations.
