The divided highway works between Batman and Hasankeyf have been completed. 39,4 kilometers of the 29,8-kilometer road, including the Hasankeyf bridges and tunnel, were completed in previous years. The first 9,6 kilometers of the route were also completed and put into service. Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, General Director of Highways Ahmet Gülşen and invitees attended the ceremony held on Sunday, March 23.
A major transformation in Türkiye's transportation infrastructure
Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, who began his speech by emphasizing that a strong transportation infrastructure is the fundamental pillar of economic development and social welfare, stated that the divided road mobilization initiated in 2002 with the motto “Road is civilization” has provided a major transformation in Türkiye’s transportation infrastructure.
Providing information about the ongoing work, Uraloğlu said, “In 2002, we increased our divided road network from 6.101 kilometers to 29.730 kilometers. While only 6 provinces were connected by divided roads, we connected 77 provinces with divided roads. We increased our highway length from 1.714 kilometers to 3.796 kilometers. We increased our bridge and viaduct length from 311 kilometers to 796 kilometers and our tunnel length from 50 kilometers to 789 kilometers. Look, in 2002, the total number of vehicles in our country was approximately 8,5 million and our divided road length was 6.101 kilometers, while our average travel time was 40 kilometers per hour. Thanks to these investments, although the number of vehicles in our country exceeds 31 million today, our average travel speed has increased to approximately 90 kilometers and although the mobility on our roads has increased exponentially, the death toll per hundred million vehicle kilometers in traffic accidents has decreased from 5,72 to 1,29.” He also reminded us of the mega projects implemented across the country.
“The integrity of the divided road between Batman and Hasankeyf has been ensured”
Minister Uraloğlu stated that 27 billion 604 million liras have been invested in Batman infrastructure investments to date, and that with the transportation projects implemented in the region, Batman's divided road length has been increased from 15 kilometers to 172 kilometers, the bituminous hot mixture coated road length has been increased from 3 kilometers to 111 kilometers, 221 kilometers of single road improvements have been carried out, and important projects such as Batman Southern Beltway and Batman City Crossing, University, Balpınar, Esentepe, Gültepe different level intersections have been completed in the region.
Sharing the works within the scope of Batman-Hasankeyf Road, Uraloğlu said; “We had opened the 465 km long sections including 1-meter Hasankeyf-1.001 Bridge, 2-meter Hasankeyf-638 Bridge and 29,8-meter Hasankeyf Tunnel structures in previous years. We are putting the remaining 9,6-kilometer section into service with bituminous hot mixture coated divided road standard.” In addition, within the scope of the project; “We have constructed 4 at-grade intersections including Akça, Binatlı, Oğuz, Batı Raman and pedestrian sidewalks on the first 5,8-kilometer section of the road. With the completion of the project; we have established a safer and more comfortable transportation service by ensuring the integrity of the divided road between Batman-Hasankeyf.”
Contributing to the Economy and the Environment
Minister Uraloğlu stated that thanks to the new road, a total of 96 million liras will be saved annually, including 46 million liras in time and 142 million liras in fuel, and that the exhaust emission will be reduced by 2.752 tons, contributing to the environment.
Hasankeyf's Potential Will Increase
Emphasizing that the Batman-Hasankeyf Road will not only provide transportation between the two cities, but will also strengthen the region's tourism, trade, industry and energy power, and accelerate the socio-economic development of the region, Uraloğlu stated that with the completion of the road, it will be an important route in the distribution of oil extracted from the Gabar Mountain Oil Field, and faster and safer transportation will be provided.
Minister Uraloğlu wished the Batman-Hasankeyf Road to be beneficial to the region and stated that they will continue transportation projects in Batman and throughout the country without slowing down in line with the vision of the Turkish Century.
