Transport
Transport services are one of the most tangible areas where EU-Türkiye cooperation has evolved considerably. EU accession process has initiated and supported many reform initiatives in the rail, maritime, aviation and road sectors. Safety, security and quality standards of Turkish transport services and primarily rail infrastructure are primarily aligned to the EU legislation. Millions of European and Turkish citizens and businesses directly benefit from these joint initiatives in the transport policy field.
The transport sector plays a key role in defining the competitiveness of Turkish economy in its role as the backbone of logistics. Transport has a key role in facilitating regional integration and trade. The objectives of EU transport policy engagement in Türkiye reflect the socio-economic development and growth targets of Türkiye.
| IPA II period (2014-2020)* | IPA I period (2007 – 2013) | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transport | € 365,2 M | € 592 M | € 957,2 M |
* Updated allocation as of September 2019
The European Union supports Türkiye in the transport field through a number of soft as well as major infrastructure projects worth 365,2 million euros under the IPA II (2014-2020) multi-annual sector operational programme, covering areas of aviation, professional competence and training, accessibility, road safety, national level master planning, urban transport planning, non-motorised transport, promotion of intermodal transport, railways reform, creation of logistics hubs, maritime spatial planning, fleet renewal schemes, emissions and low carbon transport growth strategies.
Sustainability and climate change mitigation are important objectives of the EU's support in the transport and mobility sector.
Transport is the fastest growing source of CO2 emissions and continued expansion of vehicle ownership and road traffic lead to high concentrations of air pollutants in the atmosphere, with serious respiratory and other health effects for the population, particularly in urban centres. In the national as well as urban context, transport can be a significant contributor of noise, community disruption, consumption of open space and degraded air quality.
EU – Türkiye dialogue in the transport field is ongoing. In June 2016, Türkiye finalised definition of its trans-European core transport network (TEN-T) which was agreed and published by the EU. Now the agreed TEN-T network is eligible for financing by the EU institutions. Türkiye and EU has been working closely to liberalise the railways sector and upgrade the infrastructure quality.
This programme comes as a continuation of the IPA I period Transport Operational Programme implemented in the period 2007-2013, which provided Türkiye with a total funding of 592 million euros and has served to rehabilitate around 1000 km of railways in Türkiye.
