Erdogan opens mega bridge linking Europe and Asia
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ISTANBUL • President Recep Tayyip Erdogan opened a massive suspension bridge across Turkey's Dardanelles Strait on Friday, the latest in a series of major infrastructure projects which he has prioritised during his two decades in power.
Connecting Turkey's European and Asian shores, the 1915 Canakkale Bridge was built by Turkish and South Korean companies with an investment of €2.5 billion (S$3.75 billion). It has the longest main span - the distance between the two towers - of any suspension bridge in the world.
Such mega projects have been central to Mr Erdogan's achievements since his AK Party first came to power in 2002, and include a new Istanbul airport, rail and road tunnels beneath Istanbul's Bosphorus Strait, and a bridge over it.
"These works will continue to provide profit for the state for many years," Mr Erdogan said at the opening ceremony, held on the anniversary of a 1915 Ottoman naval victory against French and British forces in the Dardanelles during World War I.
"These projects have a large share in putting our country ahead in investment, workforce and exports," he said.
Last year, he launched what he previously called his "crazy project" - a US$15 billion (S$20 billion) canal in Istanbul intended to relieve pressure on the busy Bosphorus Strait. However, critics have questioned the project's viability given Turkey's economic woes, the environmental risks and public opposition.
Ahead of national elections scheduled for next year, opinion polls have shown a slide in the popularity of Mr Erdogan and his AK Party, boosting the opposition's prospects of ousting him.
The main opposition CHP has criticised the potential cost of the bridge to the public purse, with media reports saying the build-operate-transfer agreement includes an annual payment guarantee of €380 million to the operators or a total €6 billion over the duration of the accord.
Mr Erdogan said the price for passenger vehicles to use the bridge would be 200 Turkish lira (S$18).
Work on the Dardanelles bridge project was launched in March 2017. The 2,023m length of its midspan is an allusion to the Turkish Republic's 100th anniversary in 2023.
It is the fourth bridge linking the European and Asian shores in Turkey, alongside the three built in Istanbul.
REUTERS