Taurus Express

Taurus Express

The southbound Taurus Express waiting to depart Konya station.
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Active
Locale	Interior Anatolia, south Turkey
Predecessor	CD, CNS
First service	1930
Current operator(s)	Turkish State Railways
Former operator(s)	Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits
Route
Termini	Konya Garı, Konya Adana central railway station, Adana
Distance travelled	1,600 kilometers (990 mi)
Service frequency	Daily
On-board services
Seating arrangements	Coach or Couchette
Sleeping arrangements	Private rooms
Catering facilities	Dining Car
Baggage facilities	At select stations
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrification	Istanbul-Eskişehir (Envirye)
Track owner(s)	TCDD, CFS, IRR
Route map km 0 Istanbul Haydarpaşa 1 Söğütlüçeşme 9 Bostancı 24 Pendik İstanbul Kocaeli border 44 Gebze 83 Derince 91 İzmit Kocaeli Sakarya border 131 Arifye 156 Alifuatpaşa 167 Pamukova Sakarya Bilecik border 195 Osmaneli 231 Bilecik 248 Karaköy 263 Bozüyük Bilecik Eskişehir border 313 Eskişehir Enveriye 514 Gökçekısık Eskişehir Kütahya border 374 Sabuncupınar 514 Uluköy 502 Alayunt 76 km 47 mi Kütahya 502 Alayunt Müselles Kütahya Afyonkarahisar border 344 Döğer 393 İhsaniye 359 Hamam 344 Afyon 418 Çay 467 Sultandağı Afyonkarahisar Konya border 486 Akşehir 504 Argıthan 521 Ilgın 535 Kadınhan 551 Sarayönü Meydan 576 Konya 588 Kaşınhan 619 Çumra 645 Arıkören Konya Karaman border 668 Karaman 677 Sudurağı 772 Ayrancı Karaman Konya border 781 Ereğli 815 Çakmak Konya Niğde border 832 Osmancık 865 Ulukışla 940 Gümüş 1,000 Çiftehan Niğde Adana border 1,020 Pozantı 1,034 Belemdik 1,050 Hacıkırı 1,086 Karaisalıbucağı 1,126 Kelebek Adana Mersin border 1,206 Durak 1,247 Yenice Mersin Adana border 1,254 Şakirpaşa 1,274 Adana 1,279 Kiremithane 1,292 İncirlik 1,312 Yakapınar 1,333 Ceyhan Adana Osmaniye border 1,364 Toprakkale 1,375 Osmaniye 1,384 Mamure 1,397 Yarbaşı 1,410 Bahçe 1,418 Ayran Osmaniye Gaziantep border 1,429 Fevzipaşa 1,443 Nurdağ Gaziantep Kahramanmaraş border 1,457 Beyoğlu 1,469 Türkoğlu 1,481 Köprüağzı 1,497 Narlı Kahramanmaraş Gaziantep border 1,563 Başpınar 1,581 Gaziantep km

The Taurus Express (Turkish: Toros Ekspresi) is a passenger train named after the Taurus Mountains in Southern Turkey. It was launched in 1930 by Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits and originally connected Istanbul with Aleppo, Tripoli (for connections to Palestine) and Nusaybin (for connections to Iraq). As of 2024 a service with this name is operated daily by TCDD Transport running wholly within Turkey between Konya and Adana.

History

The historical route of the Taurus Express in 1930

Poster for railways CIWL Orient-Express and Taurus Express.

1930

The Taurus Express ran for the first time on 15 February 1930 from Istanbul to Aleppo and Nusaybin. Passengers for Baghdad had to transfer to a motor coach between Nusaybin and Kirkuk, then continue on the meter-gauge railway between Kirkuk and Baghdad.

1939

Taurus Express Timetable 1939

In 1939, this service was running three times a week from Istanbul to Aleppo with connections twice a week towards Baghdad, Tehran, Haifa and Cairo.

1940

With the Mosul section of the Baghdad Railway completed in 1940, the first continuous rail journey departed from Istanbul Haydarpaşa on July 17, 1940, and arrived in Baghdad on July 20, 1940.

1942

With the completion of the Tripoli to Haifa railway in December 1942 and the bridge across the Suez canal at Ferdan a direct rail connection from Istanbul to Cairo was possible, appearing on CIWL literature. However, services stopped with the bridge at Ferdan damaged by a steamship and outbreak of war in Israel/Palestine.

1948

The Taurus Express originally ran on tracks owned by the Turkish State Railways, Southern Railways, Northern Syria & Cilician Railways and the Iraqi State Railways. The Turkish State Railways acquired the Southern Railways in 1948.

1960

A new railway line from Gaziantep to Karkamış was opened in 1960, allowing some portions of the Taurus Express to bypass Aleppo.

1965

By 1965, a portion of the Taurus Express was running to Beurit via Aleppo. Civil war in Lebanon ended this service by the mid 1970s.

Also in 1965 ownership of the Northern Syria & Cilician Railways was acquired by Syrian Railways.

1972

After 1972, passengers could travel down to Basra via connection to the Express 2 made at Baghdad Central Station. This replaced the previous metre-gauge service that ran to Basra.

2001

A portion to Aleppo and Damascus was re-added with a Syrian Railways (CFS) sleeping car running weekly to/from Istanbul.

2003

Service to Iraq was suspended in 2003, due to the outbreak of war in Iraq.

2008

The weekly portion to Aleppo last ran in June 2008, interrupted firstly by engineering work in Turkey and later by civil war in Syria from 2011.

2012

In 2012, the State Railways renewed service between Eskişehir and Adana and will once again service Istanbul when track work in the city is complete.

Consist

The consist of the first Taurus Express was this:

• TCDD Steam Loco 3688
• TCDD Baggage Car
• CIWL Sleeping Car
• CIWL Sleeping Car
• TCDD Coach
• TCDD Coach
• TCDD Baggage Car

After 1972 the diesel locomotives were the main power and the consists from 1972 to 2003 were like this:

• IRR DEM 2000 Locomotive (Baghdad-Karkamış)
• TCDD DE 24000 Locomotive (Karkamış-Istanbul)
• TCDD Postage Car
• TCDD Sleeping Car
• TCDD Couchette Car
• TCDD Coach
• TCDD Baggage Car

In popular culture

The Taurus Express is featured in Agatha Christie's crime novel Murder on the Orient Express (1934). While the main body of the story takes place on another of the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits trains, the Simplon-Orient Express, the opening chapter of the book takes place on the Taurus Express.

External links

Winchester, Clarence, ed. (1936), "The Taurus Express", Railway Wonders of the World, pp. 1521–1528 illustrated description of the route and a journey from Haydarpasa station to Basra

• Toros Ekspresi