The distance between Malatya and Ankara by train will decrease to 7 hours.
With the regional train starting from Malatya to Sivas, the people of Malatya will be able to go to Istanbul and Ankara by high-speed train via Sivas. Thus, the Malatya-Ankara journey, which took 16 hours, will be reduced to 7 hours. Malatya-Sivas Regional Train services, which will connect Malatya with Ankara and Istanbul by High Speed Train, have started as of today. The first expedition of Malatya-Sivas Regional Train, which will bring speed and comfort to Malatya with its high-speed train connection, started with a ceremony at Malatya Train Station. Speaking at the farewell program of the Regional Train, which started its first expedition at 08.10, Malatya Governor Hulusi Şahin stated that even a minute is very important in civilized countries, and said, “State Railways in Turkey is a country that fits the time very meticulously in terms of public transportation. Even by car, we cannot go from Malatya to Ankara in 6 and a half hours, but with this train, we can reach Ankara for 280 TL in connection with Sivas. This is a very valuable service. In addition, it will be possible to get on from the stations in Yazıhan and Hekimhan and in a very short time, it will be in Ankara in 6 and a half hours. Its return will depart from Ankara at around 13:00 and will arrive in Malatya at 20:00. The millet high-speed train will be extended to Malatya to the Istanbul line and reach Ankara in 3 hours and Istanbul in 6 hours. There is very little left of that. I believe that Turkey will achieve this in a very short time and Malatya will be able to go to Ankara in the morning and return in the evening. I would like to thank everyone who contributed."
Speaking in the program, Rector of İnönü University Prof. Dr. Ahmet Kızılay said that he often goes to Ankara for business and that he will now travel to Ankara by train as this time is reduced to 6 and a half hours.
TCDD Transportation Deputy General Manager Assoc. Dr. Şinasi Kazancı stated that they connected Ankara to Sivas by high-speed train and that they wanted the people of Malatya to come to Ankara faster; “I hope this is a temporary solution until the high-speed train arrives at the Malatya line. Now it is 6 and a half hours, but very soon we will reduce Malatya-Sivas to 3 and a half hours and Sivas-Ankara to 2 hours. We will be in Ankara in 6 hours.” Eskişehir-Ankara, Ankara-Istanbul, Ankara-Konya and now Ankara-Sivas line and Malatya are connected. Our hope is that the high-speed rail line coming to Sivas will be connected to Malatya by connecting the eastern provinces of Ankara and the west with high-speed trains and high-speed train networks.
After the speeches, the Malatya-Sivas Regional train set off for its first voyage. A 50 percent discount will be applied to the Malatya-Sivas route for their travels to Ankara and Istanbul by using the high-speed and regional trains together. Passengers who will travel only on the Malatya-Sivas route with the Malatya Sivas Regional Train will pay the full ticket price. The 4 September Blue Train, operating between Malatya and Ankara, will make 4 reciprocal expeditions per week.