The decision to purchase 10 new trams for Samsun will significantly increase the city's public transportation capacity. When 29 new trams are purchased in addition to the existing 10 trams, the daily passenger capacity of the light rail system will increase from 95 thousand to 128 thousand 250. This means passenger capacity increases by approximately 35 percent.
Purchasing new trams will contribute to making Samsun more comfortable and more accessible in public transportation. Providing service on the city's busiest routes, the light rail system is an important transportation alternative, especially for citizens living and working in the city center. With the purchase of new trams, more frequent trips can be organized on these routes and passengers will be able to benefit from public transportation more comfortably.
Samsun Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mustafa Demir, in his statement evaluating the decision to purchase new trams, said, “This decision is a single item of approximately 1 billion lira for our city.” It means investment. I would like to express my gratitude to our esteemed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on behalf of all our citizens from Samsun. I would also like to thank our Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, who undertook the provision of new trams. he said.
Demir emphasized that in the light rail system operated by SAMULAŞ, a subsidiary of the Metropolitan Municipality, the daily number of passengers was 2021 thousand in 70 and 90 thousand last year, and said:
“In the light rail system, which is one of the transportation choices that shoulder the burden in public transportation in Samsun, 32 trams, 24 of which are 40 meters long and 5 of which are 29 meters long, serve. In 2023, the number of passengers we carry daily increased to 92 thousand 295 as of October. We worked to increase capacity in parallel with demand. We decided to purchase new trams. As a result of the initiatives we have initiated, the purchase of 10 new trams will provide significant relief in the system. “We will continue to work to provide the most comfortable service to our citizens in public transportation, as in all areas of our city.”
Providing new trams will make a significant contribution to Samsun's transportation infrastructure. This investment will contribute to making the city more livable and more sustainable.