Turkey has reached a preliminary agreement with six international financial institutions for $6.75 billion in funding for a major railway project that will cross the Bosporus via İstanbul’s third bridge, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu announced on Tuesday.
The funding will support the 125-kilometer Northern Ring Railway Project, which will carry passengers and freight between Gebze on the Anatolian side and Halkalı on the European side via the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, linking İstanbul’s two main airports, the Sabiha Gökçen and İstanbul airports.
According to a statement from Uraloğlu, the project will become Turkey’s largest foreign-financed railway investment.
🌉 Yavuz Sultan Selim Köprüsü’nden geçecek Kuzey Çevre Demiryolu Projesi için 6 uluslararası finans kuruluşu ile 6,75 milyar dolarlık ön mutabakata vardık.
🛤️ Kuzey Çevre Demiryolu Projesi, Türkiye’nin en büyük dış finansmanlı demiryolu projesi niteliği taşıyor.
🤝 Bu yıl… pic.twitter.com/Uq5RyIASQ3
— Abdulkadir URALOĞLU (@a_uraloglu) February 24, 2026
Preliminary agreements have been reached with the World Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, the OPEC Fund for International Development and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the minister said.
Preparations for a tender are ongoing, Uraloğlu said, adding that the government aims to complete the bidding process this year and begin construction after site delivery.
He described the level of international participation as a sign of confidence in Turkey’s railway strategy and said the institutions will collectively provide $6.75 billion in financing.
The railway will span 125 kilometers and include 44 tunnels with a combined length of 59.1 kilometers and 42 bridges totaling 22.4 kilometers.
The minister said the project will ease passenger and freight congestion on the Marmaray corridor and directly link İstanbul Airport and Sabiha Gökçen Airport by rail for the first time.
Uraloğlu said the line will significantly increase Turkey’s rail transport capacity between Asia and Europe. Once completed, it is projected to carry 33 million passengers and 30 million tons of freight annually.
The Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, also known as the Third Bosporus Bridge, spans the Bosporus Strait north of İstanbul’s two older crossings — the 15 July Martyrs Bridge and the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge. It connects Garipçe in Sarıyer on the European side with Poyrazköy in Beykoz on the Asian side near the Black Sea entrance to the strait.
Construction began in 2013, and the bridge opened to traffic in August 2016. At 322 meters (1,056 feet) high, it is among the tallest bridges in the world and one of the widest suspension bridges, measuring 58.4 meters (192 feet) across.