"Urbanisation is not only the provision of infrastructure, constructing buildings and roads. We oppose all decisions that are made without discussing them with the people."
Sebahat Tuncel, Istanbul MP for the Democratic Society Party (DTP), has thus protested against the planned third bridge over the Bosphorus in Istanbul.
Planned location confirmed
While the municipality has claimed that the exact location would remain secret, it has been leaked that it is planned to span the Bosphorus between Tarabya on the European side and Beykoz on the Asian side. Metropolitan mayor Kadir Topbaş has confirmed this.
Tuncel believes that a third bridge will not solve the traffic problem, and that people living in the area are upset at the fact that the ecological balance is being ignored for profit.
"It is people who live in cities. Without people, neither bridges nor buildings have any meaning. If you want to make people's lives easier, you must consult them."
The MP further calls for a consultation with experts, such as the Chamber of Architects or the Chamber of Civil Engineers.
"Smells of profit"
Tuncel drew attention to a protest platform against a third bridge: "Neither experts nor the people approve of such a project. The insistence of the AKP on a third bridge despite the resistance smells of the desire to make a profit, just like its urban regeneration projects have turned into profit-making ventures."
Tuncel referred to the metrobus, a bus with a separate lane, as a "fiasco" and demanded to know what had become of the plans to build a tunnel instead of a bridge.
Furthermore, she said that it was vital that public transport become a priority: "All sections of society must come together and discuss this. The issues do not get solved with temporary solutions. There must be a new debate on how political and social issues of the city are dealt with." (EZÖ/AG)
