Capital Express (Turkey)

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Başkent Ekspresi
Capital Express

The eastbound Capital Express waiting to depart Haydarpaşa station in Istanbul.
Overview
Service type	Intercity rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Northwest, Central Anatolia
First service	1993[1]
Last service	31 January 2012[2]
Current operator(s)	Turkish State Railways
Route
Termini	Haydarpaşa, Istanbul Ankara (1992-2009) Eskişehir (2009-12)
Distance travelled	576 km (357.9 mi) (1992-2009) 313 km (194.5 mi) (2009-12)
Average journey time	2 hours, 27 minutes
Service frequency	Daily
On-board services
Seating arrangements	Airline-style coach seating
Catering facilities	On-board café
Technical
Rolling stock	TVS2000
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC
Operating speed	150 km/h (93 mph) maximum
Track owner(s)	TCDD
Route map Legend Distance Station 0 Istanbul 1 km (0.6 mi) Söğütlüçeşme 9 km (6 mi) Bostancı 24 km (15 mi) Pendik 91 km (57 mi) İzmit 131 km (81 mi) Arifye 231 km (144 mi) Bilecik 263 km (163 mi) Bozüyük 313 km (194 mi) Eskişehir 486 km (302 mi) Polatlı 551 km (342 mi) Sincan 576 km (358 mi) Ankara

The Capital Express (Turkish: Başkent Ekspresi) was one of the six daily intercity trains operating between Istanbul and Ankara on the Istanbul-Ankara railway before the Yüksek Hızlı Tren high-speed train service replaced all intercity trains on the line. The Capital Express was the fastest of the six trains, making limited stops only in large cities. The train would complete its journey in just over four hours and in the Eskişehir Province, trains would reach conventional speeds of 150 km/h (93 mph), which still hold the record for fastest conventional train service in Turkey. When the high-speed rail service was opened between Ankara and Eskişehir on 13 March 2009, the Capital Express, along with the other five intercity trains, were cut back between Istanbul and Eskişehir. During this period two more daily intercity trains were added, the Sakarya Express and Eskişehir Express, increasing daily intercity service to eight trains.

On 31 January 2012, the Capital Express was discontinued due to the rehabilitation of the railway between Istanbul and Arifye. When trackwork was completed in 2014, YHT high-speed service replaced the Capital Express all the way from Ankara to Istanbul.^[3]