Turkey completes 21 ecological bridges for wildlife protection

Turkey's Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, announced that 21 ecological bridges have been constructed across the nation's road and railway networks to protect biodiversity and wildlife migration routes.

To date, 16 ecological bridges have been completed on highways, with the most recent project finished on the Erzurum North Ring Road. The ministry is planning 19 additional highway ecological bridges in strategic locations, including the Konya-Aksaray State Road, the Kaş-Kalkan Road, and the Batman-Hasankeyf Road at the Suçeken Gorge.

On the railway network, five ecological bridges have been completed. These include one on the Ankara-Eskişehir High-Speed Train (YHT) line—noted as the first of its kind built on a high-speed rail line globally—three within the Halkalı-Kapıkule High-Speed Train Project, and one between Banaz and Eşme as part of the Ankara-Izmir High-Speed Railway Project. These structures are designed using natural materials to blend with the local vegetation and environment.