Road, bridge tolls in Turkey reap $295.5 million throughout September

ANKARA – Anadolu Agency

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Turkey earned 905.2 million Turkish Liras ($295.5 million) from tolls, including those on bridges over the Istanbul Strait, in the first nine months of 2016, according to the country’s highway department.

The July 15 Martyrs’ Bridge and the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, both spanning the Bosphorus and connecting Europe and Asia, together yielded 221.9 million liras ($72.5 million), while Turkey’s highway tolls earned 683.2 million liras ($223 million), according to data released by the Turkish Highways Directorate on Oct. 21.

The figures indicate that 317 million vehicles paid tolls to use the facilities in the same period. Drivers in Turkey pay 4.75 liras ($1.56) for the bridge tolls, with higher fees for vehicles that have more than two axles.

In September, 35 million vehicles crossed Turkey’s toll bridges and toll roads, paying a total of nearly 79 million liras ($25.8 million).

Last year, 412.4 million vehicles crossed toll bridges and roads in Turkey, paying a total of 880.2 million liras ($290.4 million). The toll over the two open bridges over the Bosphorus last year was 4.25 liras ($1.39) per crossing.