“Çakabey”, the first of the 15 vessels built by Izmir Metropolitan Municipality at Yalova Özata Shipyard for 117 million Euros, made its first voyage in the Gulf between Konak and Karşıyaka. Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu participated in the first voyage of Çakabey, which anchored in Konak. The first passenger of the first voyage, which attracted great interest from the people of Izmir, was a young girl named Esra Şener. Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu gave a plaque to Şener in memory of the day. In the voyage of firsts, Çakabey’s captain Çağrı Gökhan Tortum surprised Mayor Kocaoğlu before the ship departed and had him sign the “Vessel Journal”, also known as the logbook. Passengers, who were excited to participate in Çakabey’s first voyage, took many photos with Mayor Kocaoğlu. After the 10-minute journey, Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu was welcomed by Karşıyaka Mayor Hüseyin Mutlu Akpınar at Karşıyaka Pier, where Çakabey docked.

The Second Vessel “Dokuz Eylül” Will Be in Izmir Soon

Wishing Çakabey to be beneficial to all Izmir residents, Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu said that 15 vessels will be commissioned by the end of 2017. Mayor Kocaoğlu noted that Çakabey, who came to Izmir 84 days ago, went on an expedition after his examinations were completed and said, “He had deficiencies that were called ‘childhood diseases’ in the industry. All of these were resolved and all kinds of documents were obtained. Today, it made its first voyage from Konak Pier at 11.40. Since Çakabey is the first prototype, both the company and our friends know what is missing in other vessels and what needs to be done according to the specifications. From now on, the checks and acceptance stages will be much faster. “Our second ship will arrive in the coming weeks,” he said.

New Vessel of Izmır Will Impress

• New vessels will be catamaran hull type
• The main material of the building will be ‘carbon composite’ material, which is stronger than steel, lighter than aluminum, durable, longer lasting and has lower operating costs.
• 15 vessels will be built, of which 13 vessels will have an operating speed of 18 knots (per hour) and 2 vessels will have a operating speed of 30 knots per hour (the speed of existing ships is 9-10 knots per hour).
• The vessels will have full electronic control systems and manoeuvrability. In this way, vessels will be able to dock and leave the piers in a very short time.
• The vessels were planned to meet the needs of Izmir in domestic and international gulf transportation.
• The length of the vessels will be at least 37 meters and their width will be at least 11.5 meters.
• There will be comfortable and ergonomic seating with wide seat distance (knee room).
• Inner gulf ships will have a capacity of 420 people, and outer gulf vessels will have a capacity of 400 people. The vessels will also have space suitable for physically disabled people.
• There will be buffets and automatic vending kiosks (snacks) selling cold and hot drinks on the vessels.
• There will be ramps at the front of the vessels, which will be wide enough to allow passengers to board and exit quickly, suitable for use by disabled citizens without assistance, and will be automatically controlled by the captain.
• There will also be a baby care table on the vessels.
• There will be normal toilets and disabled toilets.
• Ship ergonomics will be configured to suit the use of disabled citizens and strollers.
• There will be embossed warning and guidance signs (written in Braille Alphabet) in places where necessary on vessels, so that visually impaired people can read them.
• The vessels will be two-decked. The first floor will be a closed area, the second floor will be a closed and open area.
• There will be bicycle parks on the vessel. Thus, bicycle users will be able to travel more comfortably on vessels.
• There will be at least 3 independent pet cages for passengers boarding the vessel to carry their pets.
• There will be luggage racks and areas where passengers can put their suitcases and bags.
• Air-conditioned indoor passenger lounges will be created to prevent sweating in summer and cold in winter.
• The vessels will be managed by providing control and supervision through a ‘Fleet Management System’ from a center to be established. Through the same system, passengers will be informed through screens on the vessel and in shore units. TV broadcasts can also be watched on the vessel.
• The vessels will have wireless internet equipment.
• Spare parts will also be purchased within the scope of the tender in order to carry out the maintenance/repair of the vessels smoothly.

Target is 27 million passengers

It is expected that the new vessels will increase the total number of passengers benefiting from sea transportation by 25 percent in their first year in Izmir. This rate is expected to reach 100 percent in 2017, when the last vessel will arrive. In other words, it is aimed that the number of passengers, which is currently 13 million 500 thousand annually, will double and 27 million people will use sea transportation. This will greatly relieve the traffic load in the city.