Ankara Metropolitan Municipality organized the “Longing Ends: Başkent Meets New Buses” program for 85 buses that were brought to the Capital and started to operate today. Speaking at the ceremony held with the participation of CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, IYI Party Chairman Meral Akşener and Democrat Party Chairman Gültekin Uysal, ABB President Mansur Yavaş said, “At the end of 2022, 355 buses, 22 of which are new buses and 377 of which are converted electric buses, We will offer our vehicle to the service of the people of Ankara.”
Ankara Metropolitan Mayor Mansur Yavaş, who emphasized at every opportunity that the last bus purchase took place in the capital in 2013 and that the existing buses serving are twice as old as the world, was delivered to the capital as a result of his persistent struggle to purchase a new bus.
Hosted by Metropolitan Mayor Mansur Yavaş, the program "Longing Ends: The Capital Meets with New Buses" was held at EGO 85rd Region Campus for 3 buses before they set off on their maiden voyages. CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, IYI Party Chairman Meral Akşener, Democrat Party Chairman Gültekin Uysal, Saadet Party Deputy Chairman Prof. Dr. Sabri Tekir, Deputies, Deputy Chairman, district mayors, Metropolitan Municipality Council members and bureaucrats, NGO representatives and many muhtars attended.
FROM THE GENERAL CHAIRMANS TO THE PRESIDENT YAVAS
Participating in the ceremony, CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu spoke highly of Ankara Metropolitan Mayor Mansur Yavaş, who undersigned new projects:
“If the bus has not been taken since 2013, there is a problem, and if there is a problem for our Metropolitan Mayor who is trying to get a bus, there is an obstacle. If millions of our children do not reach the internet, we have a problem whether it is during the pandemic or not. If hundreds of thousands of our children go to bed hungry, there is a problem. If our young people are worried about their future and they are thinking about how to go abroad, we have a problem. If the Turkish lira turns into stamps against foreign currencies, we have a problem. Dear friends, our Mayor of the Metropolitan Municipality expressed very well, he said that I paid a debt of 4 billion liras and did not take out a bank loan, except for the bus loan. This means that you can manage a city without borrowing money. Mr. President, you said you don't need crazy projects, this country needs smart men, not crazy projects. In front of all Ankara residents, I would like to say thank you.''
IYI Party Chairman Meral Akşener expressed her satisfaction with the services rendered in Ankara with the following words:
“I am very happy to witness such a good work. Today, we see the performance of Mr. Mansur Yavaş as the Mayor of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, as it was yesterday, and that the smallest accusations against him are not found in the eyes of the citizens, and that he stands by the citizens as an honest, hardworking and tangible person. I say in front of everyone, may Allah be pleased with you, may your friends be pleased with you, we are pleased with you, I hope the people of Ankara will be pleased with you too."
In his speech at the ceremony, Democrat Party Chairman Gültekin Uysal said, “With the 2019 local elections, we are all at peace with our hearts, as a resident of Ankara, where he is in charge of the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, whose intention we are sure of, the removal of the veil. 801 million dollars was spent on Ankapark rather than the needs of the nation, but this is not accounted for, so our citizens pay this cost in a country where administrative, political and judicial control is not possible.
YAVAŞ: “WE ACTED TO MINIMIZE THE PROBLEMS OF OUR CITIZENS”
Slow, who started his speech by saying, "We always drew attention to two points before and after the election process," said:
“The first was to make a transparent, participatory and accountable management approach dominant. We have received many awards, including the 'World Mayor's Capital Award' and the 'International Transparency Award', on behalf of 6 million Ankara residents, for our work on this issue. The second was to put forward an understanding of municipality that prioritizes the health of the people and the lives of the people. We should have been different, we should have determined our subject as an understanding that facilitates human life, increases the welfare of our fellow citizens and considers their health. We took immediate action to minimize the problems of our citizens, who had to wait in the snow, sun and rain, and who had difficulties in overcrowded buses since no buses had been taken since 2013.”
Reminding that while Ankara's population was 2010 million 4 thousand in 460, 2 thousand 37 buses served, Yavaş said, “In 2020, the number of buses in Ankara, whose population was 5 million 663 thousand, decreased to 1547. While the population of Ankara has increased by 2013 percent since 12, the number of active vehicles within the EGO General Directorate has decreased to 21 percent. This inverse ratio revealed the reverse not only of the numbers but also of a management approach. Worse still, the average age of our fleet was 12. This situation gave us new responsibilities as soon as we took office. We took action immediately and completed our negotiations and preparations. While the process was going on, the whole public followed what kind of difficulties we faced, but finally we are here and we are at peace because we will meet our citizens from Ankara with our new buses.”
“I EXPERIENCE THE HAPPINESS OF CONSCIOUSNESS”
Continuing his speech by saying, "I have been experiencing both the conscientious happiness and benefits of transparent municipality since the day I took office," Yavaş said that the tenders in the bus purchasing process were also broadcast live, and reminded that the number of buses, which was announced as 282, reached 301 as a result of the open tender.
Yavaş provided the following information about the buses that were delivered and started their services in the program made in the EGO 91rd Region Campus, which was established on an area of 621 thousand 4 square meters, with a 14-storey service building, a workshop building with 44 channels, CNG and natural gas stations, and cost 3 million TL. also shared:
“301 of these 168 buses will be Mercedes brand natural gas articulated. As a result of today's first delivery, 33 natural gas articulated buses will start their journey. Again, our Mercedes brand 105 bus is in the class called natural gas solo. The 21 units we received today will start their flights immediately. Today, we took delivery of all 28 of our Otokar branded diesel articulated buses. These buses will start their service immediately. As of today, 301 of our 82 buses will begin to serve our fellow citizens. In addition, 3 locally produced buses were donated to our municipality within the scope of the European Union program. We will start to see these 3 environmentally friendly and new generation buses on the streets of Ankara as of today.”
“NEW BUSES WILL BEGIN TO SERVE ON THE MOST DEMANDED LINES”
Noting that 51 8-meter buses purchased from the State Supply Office were put into service in September and that the municipal subsidiary BELKA converted the old buses to electric, Yavaş said, “As a result of all these efforts, by the end of 2022, 355 new buses and 22 converted electric buses. We will have offered our 377 vehicles to the service of Ankara residents. I would like to remind my fellow citizens once again. As our new buses arrive, they will start to serve on the lines with the highest density and the most demanded buses from us. We detected the requests coming from Başkent 153 and social media using artificial intelligence," he said.
Emphasizing that the color and design of the buses are determined by the people of Ankara, in accordance with the participatory municipality approach, Yavaş said, “Of the designs we put to the vote on the Başkent Mobile application, the red-colored, hitit-sunshine design got the most votes.”
“WE WILL NEVER GIVE UP THE LOVE OF SERVING OUR CITIZENS”
“No matter what happens, no matter what challenges we face, we will never give up our passion to serve our fellow citizens. Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş said:
“As soon as we took office, our budget was turned upside down with the decree that was issued overnight. The procedure of metro payments made by the Ministry, but whose budget was cut from the municipality, was changed unilaterally overnight. According to the old procedure, we were supposed to pay 2019 million 2020 thousand TL in the 2021-year period covering 3-28 and 408, but with the change, we paid 3 million 657 thousand TL in these 511 years. I draw your attention, there is a difference of 23 times. The amount to be repaid in 246 years with the old system will be paid in 11 years as a result of the decree. Of course, these are no excuses. Only 5 million Euros were used for these buses. We paid nearly 4 billion debts. We did not borrow a penny from the bank. Since the day we signed our loan agreement, the additional burden brought by the exchange rate differences to our Municipality has unfortunately been approximately 300 million liras.”
“WE ARE RESISTING NOT TO HIGH PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION”
Continuing his speech with the words "We have been resisting not to increase transportation prices for a long time", Mayor Yavaş also gave information about the ongoing transportation projects:
“Considering the current economic conditions and the increase in expense costs, the public transportation fee should have been over 6 liras. You can spend money on crazy projects, but our priority is people and human health. I did not know about this before the election. We closed the open sewerage of 108 villages, and gave priority to infrastructure investments in areas where cars that constantly flood in the rain go swimming. We have built bridged intersections in places where vehicles have the most accidents, and we continue our work. We come across this from time to time. For what you did. If you do not consider these works for human life to be a service, I am telling those who criticize that we did nothing according to you, but when you go out and look at the people of Ankara, you will definitely see that peace and abundance have settled and there is a great satisfaction in the people of Ankara. This is the real municipality…. What is municipal activity? When there is an economic problem, it is to be next to your student, worker, officer. It is to provide accommodation for young people who cannot find a house and dormitory, to provide a bus for Hacettepe University students and to ensure that they do not walk in the snow or rain. Let alone their crazy projects, it is to support local producers and agriculture, which is Ankara's greatest power, to produce. I think this is real municipalism. We will continue to work in this way. We will not consider any concrete and plastic made as municipal services. The people of Ankara should know this. Ankara Metropolitan Municipality is next to each other whenever they are in trouble, and as we always say, no child should go to bed hungry, no child should be deprived of their education. We gave 26 GB internet to more than 6 thousand children for 10 months. We brought internet to all 918 neighborhoods, enabling the children there to benefit from EBA. Most importantly, through Başkentkart, aid is no longer distributed door-to-door to families receiving social aid in Ankara. They go and buy their own needs. This is how we provided a kind of family insurance. As Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, we provided natural gas aid to 220 thousand families from 180 families for the first time. For the Keçiören-Airport Metro, the ministry said we will do it, but it has been 2,5 years and the projects are still not finished. Sometimes they ask us why it was late, but the Ministry of Transport started before us. We are about to finish the project of the 7,4-kilometer Mamak Metro, which was allowed to us, but there was no project. More than 30 drillings have been made and hopefully this project will be finished in February. After the project is over, the Ministry of Transport has to accept this project. Then it has to be included in the investment program by the government. We also found a large part of his loan with the principal agreement. If all goes well, if there is no delay, we will hit the Mamak Metro as well. We have also started working for Dikmen Metro. First, surveys are conducted, and we discuss with scientists, headmen and NGOs about which lines the Dikmen Metro should take.
Metropolitan Mayor Mansur Yavaş, together with the presidents, got on the newly purchased buses after the ceremony and made investigations.
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