IMM President Ekrem İmamoğluspoke at the drawing ceremony held for the conversion of 1.803 minibuses and 322 minibuses into taxis. Stating that they will make the earthquake the first issue of Turkey after May 14, İmamoğlu said, "I will never be a person who deceived you before the election, nor now, nor after my duty is over." Noting that the new design vehicles will turn into 'wanted vehicles', İmamoğlu said, “So they will not stop the other taxi. In order to stop this taxi, they will choose you from among them. For this reason, you will earn better money, you will be more satisfied taxis and you will do a good job. Although not many, you will be the people who carry our disabled citizens as well as earn money and receive blessings. Don't forget that," he said.
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) has completed the applications for the conversion of 1.803 minibuses and 322 taxi minibuses, which it has promoted in the past months, into “new taxis”. A ceremony was held at the Küçükçekmece Yahya Kemal Beyatlı Cultural Center for the drawing of lots to be made among 2 thousand 532 applications. Ceremony; IMM President Ekrem İmamoğlu, IYI Party Istanbul Provincial Chairman Coşkun Yıldırım, Küçükçekmece Mayor Kemal Çebi and CHP MPs Turan Aydoğan and Gökan Zeybek participated. Imamoglu, who examined the sample taxis produced in line with the demands of 5 different companies, IMM and tradesmen before the ceremony, made a speech before the drawing of lots.
“AFTER MAY 14, WE WILL MAKE THE EARTHQUAKE THE FIRST ISSUE OF THE COUNTRY”
Starting his speech by wishing God's mercy to the citizens who lost their lives in the earthquake disaster, İmamoğlu said, “It is our duty to ensure that all our cities are resilient and that our people do not lose their lives in disasters. In order to do this, it is imperative that we implement a joint mobilization. I would like to remind you here that it is the first duty of all our friends here to take care of the soundness of their homes and to ensure that they, their families, their homes and their neighbors do not experience the slightest distress in case of a disaster. Of course, our institutions will do their best. This is a big, holistic issue. It has no political view, party, etc. This issue is everyone's problem, from the central administration to the local administration, from our citizens to non-governmental organizations, from banks to the construction sector. We have taken very important steps in this regard, and we will continue to do so. After May 14, I hope we will make it the first issue of the country in real terms, accelerate it, and prevent this country from kneeling in pain in the disaster.
“I CAN'T TREAT YOU EVERYTHING LIKE GÜLLÜ GÜLISTAN”
Emphasizing that protecting Istanbul, Turkey and people's lives is everyone's main concern, İmamoğlu said, “I will express this in every environment I am in. You are my precious compatriots. I know that there are those who have relatives, spouses, friends, and friends in that region. I spent about 13 days in the region, since the earthquake. Very clear; There is a disaster, it is an event of nature, it is destiny. But the loss of those people's lives in the disaster is the fault of us, our people and our managers. If we build those buildings properly, it is not possible to experience such a tragedy. Therefore, I have to share these feelings with you and make you nervous. When you get to your house, when you walk in the door, I have to make you say, 'What can I do to eliminate this threat?' You chose me for him. I can't treat you like everything is rosy. I have to face the facts, show the real way, the real route. I will never be a person who deceives you before the election, now or after my duty is over. I will never be a cheater. I am here with these feelings,” he said.
SHARED “MINIBUSMAN MEMORY” WITH MINI BREAKERS
Saying, "I love minibus shopkeepers," İmamoğlu said in a memory of his childhood, "When I was a kid, when I was going to school from the village to the city, I was waiting for a red minibus. I would especially wait for that minibus to come. Sometimes I would have to take another vehicle if it was delayed, but the driver of that minibus was a very sweet person. When I got into his car—my school was in the city center—I felt at peace and safe on the way to school, as if someone from my family was driving that car. That precious elder, our brother -God bless him, I hope he is alive- usually wore such a V-neck sweater and shirt. That's why I came to you today wearing a sweater like his. I feel like one of you.” Continuing the rest of his speech by removing his jacket, İmamoğlu underlined that he used minibuses as a means of transportation many times during the day, both working and going to university in Istanbul.
“I HAVE NOT AND WILL NOT BE A PERSON WHO NEGLECTS ITS CITIZEN IN ANY ELEMENT OF ISTANBUL”
Saying, “I got to know people and Istanbul in those minibuses and buses,” İmamoğlu said:
“I have never been and never will be a person who neglects his citizens in any aspect of Istanbul. I have always said this in the taxi issue or the minibus issue: I think of our 16 million people in the first row. How will my citizen get service from the taxi? How will you get service from the minibus? How do we optimize this? In the second place, I think of my tradesmen behind the wheel. For me these two lines; When I first meet and match the wishes of my citizens and then the demands of our tradesmen at a reasonable level, then the result here will make everyone happy, at least to a large extent. We have not kept science, technique and common sense away from our table in any work we have done for him. While we were making a book, we never did that calculation either. When it was his turn, it was said, 'They can't. 'No, bro. My minibus shopkeeper will get his due. We said, 'How can he go home if he doesn't make money?' We have never taken a step back from that.”
“OUR CLIENTS WILL WIN SO THAT THEY HAVE A SMILE”
Reminding that minibus shopkeepers could not get a raise for nearly 2,5 years due to election excuses, İmamoğlu said, “As soon as I took office, I had to give this raise. Our tradesmen will win so that their faces will be smiling. Let the face of our citizen who gets on that minibus be smiley. Communicate well with each other. That's why we took these decisions. Today, we are drawing lots for a very valuable transformation. At the UKOME meeting on November 30, 2022, it was decided to transform a total of 321 minibuses into taxis, 1.803 of which were direct. During the application process between January 16 and February 17, a total of 2.623 transporters applied to convert their vehicles into taxis. We have listed these applications by line. Today, we are drawing lots in the presence of a notary public for 2.531 taxi conversion rights out of 1.342 applications on lines that receive more applications than the number of vehicles to be converted into taxis. I wish good luck and good luck to Istanbul and our tradesmen who will gain the right to transform into a taxi.”
“YOU WILL BOTH WIN AND GET A PRAYER”
Stating that the new design taxis will add value to Istanbul and the tradesmen, İmamoğlu said, “A few of our people just said to me, 'We will buy another taxi'. Look, please trust this brother. I insistently say that -the tariff will be 30 percent more - these taxis will be the taxis sought in Istanbul. So they won't stop the other taxi. In order to stop this taxi, they will choose you from among them. For this reason, you will earn better money, you will be more satisfied taxis and you will do a good job. Although not many, you will be the people who carry our disabled citizens as well as earn money and receive blessings. Don't forget that," he said.
“YOU WILL PROVIDE THESE VEHICLES WITH A COST UP TO THE LEVEL OF SECOND HAND VEHICLES”
Emphasizing the importance of the training given to the drivers who will serve in this process, İmamoğlu also shared information about the purchasing process of the vehicles:
“My friends just told me, companies will have provided our tradesmen with over 1.700 taxis between March and July. Whichever opportunity exists, it will reduce its cost, and from the first moment, I said to both our Secretary General, our assistant and our affiliates, through our responsible friends there, 'My brother, you will provide these vehicles in the most appropriate way to our shopkeepers who will be new taxi drivers'. So this business isn't going to go back to the bargaining business at the gallery. We will continue to provide this opportunity. And we have made an effort to provide you with these tools in the most convenient way. As Mr. Buğra has just said, you will have obtained these vehicles at a cost that has really come down to the level of second-hand vehicles. To solve the transportation problems of Istanbul, to improve public transportation in our city, to make our taxis with identity, especially at the individual transportation point... sohbet You will be the people that Therefore, believe me, each of you will actually greet your customer, just like the Mayor of Istanbul. So please take care of what you do. In that respect, I wish you to be a shareholder of this great transportation process, and I wish all our tradesmen and Istanbulites to be blessed with these beautiful taxis, these comfortable vehicles and the services of you, our valuable tradesmen, as we step into successful days together.”
THE PROBLEM OF NON-PASSENGERS WILL BE AVOIDED
İBB Deputy Secretary General Dr. According to the information given by Buğra Gökce; The new taxis will be large-capacity panel vans. Negotiations and developments with mobile application companies continue for passengers who want to use the taxi shared. Taxis will have smart beacons. The smart beacon will display the words "TAXI", "FULL", "EMPTY", "RESERVE", "OUT OF SERVICE" and "SOS". Smart beacons will be connected to the taximeter. In this way, problems such as choosing passengers and not picking up passengers between taxi drivers and citizens will be eliminated. There will be a "panic button for the driver" inside the vehicle. If the button is pressed, the phrase "SOS" will appear on the beacon. Law enforcement officers, who see the "SOS" text, will intervene by stopping the vehicle. There will be cameras in the taxis, the Public Transportation Control and Management Center will conduct inspections over the taxi interior images.
NON-PENALTY DRIVERS WILL WORK ACCORDING TO TUDES
New taxis must operate with at least one mobile application that has received an Electronic Transportation Management License issued by IMM. Taxis will charge 30 percent more than the yellow taxi fare. There will be a security compartment between the passenger and the driver in the taxi and there will be a cover that can be opened and closed for cash exchange. The vehicles will also have an intelcom system that provides driver and passenger communication. There will be a payment device in the taxis that can offer the option of paying with credit card, debit card and Istanbulkart at the same time. Space for wheelchairs will be provided in taxis. For visually impaired passengers, the information on the taximeter inside the vehicle will be announced with a voice announcement, and "braille alphabet" will be available for visually impaired passengers. Taxi drivers will pay attention to their clothes; will not wear clothes such as shorts and slippers. taxi drivers; After receiving 15 days of training on topics such as "Personal Development and Awareness, Istanbul City Information, Foreign Language, Emergency, Crisis Management and First Aid, Safe Driving Technique, Empathy and Sign Language for Disadvantaged Groups", he will start driving. According to TUDES, drivers who are not penalized will work on passenger/route selection, rude behavior, and overcharge. If the taxi driver has been involved in crime 3 times, the taxi plate will return to the way it was before the conversion.”
THANKS FROM THE CHAIRMAN TO İMAMOĞLU
Emin Alagöz, the President of the Minibus Chamber of Craftsmen, also expressed his feelings, “I really thought a lot about what to talk about and what to do when I got here. The minibus community has been going back and forth for the last 10 years. Until when? In 2019, after you took office, unfortunately, a pandemic started, including in the pandemic, you took care of this community and brought the minibus shopkeepers to the level of the minibus shopkeepers of the 2000s and 90s. I would like to thank you on behalf of myself and my tradesmen.” After the speeches, the lots were drawn under the supervision of the Bakırköy 23rd Notary Public and the first winners were announced.