The discount on the Osmangazi Bridge increased the traffic by 30 percent: Transport, Maritime and Communication Minister Ahmet Arslan said that the reduction in the tolls of the Osman Gazi Bridge provided an approximately 30 percent increase in vehicle traffic.
Arslan stated that the reduction made in the tolls of the Osman Gazi Bridge positively reflected on the vehicle traffic and said, “There was an increase of approximately 30 percent. However, in the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge and Osmangazi Bridge and the highways that are their continuation, our initial feasibility was already showing that we will not be able to reach the numbers we want until these projects are completed and a certain period of time passes, without creating additional traffic. This is no surprise for us. ” found the assessment.
Stating that citizens consume fuel by wandering around the Gulf instead of crossing the bridge, Arslan said:
“Citizen fills up his tank while leaving Istanbul. When it comes to the Osmangazi Bridge junction, it goes into a psychology such as 'if I cross the bridge, I will pay 65 liras, if I walk around the bay, it is as if I will be free'. We want our people to do this well. They should not waste time traveling around the bay, increase the harmful effect on the environment and, more importantly, avoid the risk of accidents. In the course of time, we will open the part up to Bursa nowadays. We will have opened Gemlik Bursa after Orhan Gazi. It will create additional traffic and hopefully within two years, it will reach those numbers when we finish the highway up to Izmir and take Çanakkale's traffic here as a ring. "
Crane on Osmangazi Bridge
On the other hand, Arslan emphasized that the crane on the Osmangazi Bridge did not have any negative effect on traffic, and used the following statements:
“Is the traffic flow disrupted there due to the crane not being dismantled, no. Is there any harm to people, no. Maybe they think psychologically, "Is there a crane over there? Will it tip over?" That crane was built and mounted so that it would not tip over when there was no bridge, no work. Therefore, our people should be comfortable about this. Our concern is the total interest of our people. Since the wholesale benefit is the use of this project, the crane dismantling works are done over time. There is no room for hesitation here. "
Actually, the desired traffic density will be formed by the direct exit of the vehicles to Ulubat at the end of the full integration of the highway with the Bursa ring road. In addition, the completion of the southern part of the road from İzmir to the region where the Manisa-Akhisar road intersects until the start of the tourism season will have a serious impact on the travel time, and will contribute to the bridge traffic.