CHP MP Mehmet Tahtasız brought the guarantee payments made for the High Speed Train Station built by the Cengiz-Limak-Kolin partnership to the agenda of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM). Addressing Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu in his parliamentary question, Tahtasız asked, “How many passenger guarantees were given annually and in total since the station opened in 2016, how many passengers used it, how much was paid?”
Difference Between Passenger Guarantee and Actual Numbers
Sözcü According to the news by Veli Toprak from the newspaper, the passenger targets determined in the first two years of the High Speed Train Station were exceeded. However, passenger numbers started to decrease as of 2018. In 2018, only 2 million 497 thousand passengers used the station.
According to the information provided, there was a significant difference between the number of passengers arriving and the guarantee payments made in the following years:
Between 2018-2020 5 million passengers were guaranteed each year. However, the actual passenger numbers were:
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- 2018 million 1 thousand passengers in 933 (The news says 1 million 933 thousand in the first year and 1 million 91 thousand in the second year, there is an inconsistency in this part. There is a difference between the 2018 million 2 thousand passenger number given for 497 and the 1 million 933 thousand number below. Since the 2018-2020 period is included in the general flow of the text, 2018 million 1 thousand passengers were taken into account as the 933 number.)
- 2019 million 1 thousand passengers in 91 (The news says 1 million 91 thousand passengers in the second year. This was also taken into account for 2019.)
- The number of passengers in 2020 has not been specified.
Between 2020-2024 A total of 8 million passengers were targeted, with a guarantee of 32 million passengers per year. However, the actual passenger numbers were:
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- 2021 thousand passengers in 849
- 2022 million 2 thousand passengers in 193
- 2023 million 2 thousand passengers in 938
- 2024 million 3 thousand passengers in 112
Serious Deficits in Payments Made
In total, between 2016 and 2024, for the High Speed Train Station 69 million 352 thousand dollars payment is stated to have been made. For the station built with the Build-Operate-Transfer model, if the passenger guarantee is not met, the company $1,5 for each passenger ödeniyor. A total of 2 million passengers were guaranteed for the first 2 years, 2 million for the next 5 years, and 4 million for the next 8 years.
