Turkey High-speed Train Test Run To Begin In May

ANKARA - Rails laid for Turkey`s first high-speed train between central provinces of Ankara and Eskisehir are "clear" and test run will begin in May the latest, Turkish State Railways (TCDD) officials said on Friday.
TCDD officials said that infrastructure of the railway was ready and that they were working on testing and signalization along the line.
Test run between Ankara and Eskisehir is expected to go on until fall and TCDD plans to start high-speed train service at the end of this year.
Turkey started building high-speed rail lines in 2003. The project will link capital Ankara to Istanbul. The first phase of the project was the line between Ankara and Eskisehir. High-speed train will lower the 180-minute train travel from Ankara to Eskisehir to 70 minutes.
TCDD purchased first high-speed train sets, with a maximum speed of 250 kilometers per hour, from Spain`s CAF company last year.
(TÇ-MS)