Taksim Tünel (Tunnel)

Beyoğlu, one of the historical districts of Istanbul, is home to one of the oldest subways in the world. This metro, which is referred to as Taksim Tünel and most often referred to only as ‘Tünel’, is the second example in the world after the UK.

Its construction aimed to accelerate the transportation between Galata, one of the important financial centers of the 19th century, and the Pera, the center of attraction for social life. Briefly the Tünel aims to shorten the distance between Pera and Galata. Pera is a very old name of today's Beyoğlu, by the way…

The tunnel, construction of which began in 1871, was opened for transportation in a grand ceremony in 1874. The electricity provided by the steam engine provides everything the facility needs. In 1910, work began on converting it to an electric tramway, but it remained unfinished. The tunnel, operated for many years by a foreign subsidiary, became national in 1939. It was converted into an electric tramway in 1971, now it is faster. It is also notable for its capacity of 170 people at the same time in two 16-meter wagons.

This historical tradition continues in the same way today. The tunnel, which greets its guests with a little dim light and a little electronic sounds, today allows you to travel between Karaköy and Beyoğlu in a pleasant and quite fast way.