The M2, officially referred to as the M2 YenikapñâÂÂHacñosman metro line (), is a rapid transit line of the Istanbul Metro and the first heavy metro of Istanbul and Turkey. It is colored light green on the maps and route signs. The M2 operates between Hacñosman in southern Sarñyer to Yenikapñ in south-central Fatih on the historic peninsula of Istanbul. Shuttle trains run from Sanayi to Seyrantepe to Rams Park. The M2 line has 16 stations, all but one underground, and a total length of . A daily ridership of about 500,000 makes it the busiest line of the Istanbul Metro system.
Construction for a northâÂÂsouth metro line started on 19 August 1992 when the groundbreaking of the M2 took place. The original route was a wholly underground line between Taksim and 4. Levent. Construction of the tunnels took place in three separate areas; Taksim, à Âià Âli and 4. Levent. These tunnels were connected to each other on 8 July 1994 and were completed on 30 April 1995. The line was completed in early 11 January 1999 and the first rolling stock were lowered into the tunnels. On 25 March 1999 the first test runs began and the line entered service on 16 September 2000 between Taksim and Levent. "4. Levent" was opened one month later on 24 October 2000.
On 15 October 2021, it was announced that ðBB's free Wi-Fi service had started on rolling stock serving on the line. In addition, 384 USB charging ports were installed in 192 trains serving on the line.
The following are events in the timeline of the M2 service:
The M2 starts at Hacñosman in southwestern Sarñyer. From there it travels under Büyükdere Avenue, a major northâÂÂsouth road in the city, through ðstanbul's two major financial districts; Maslak and Levent. The line then heads slightly west just south of Levent through à Âià Âli to historical Taksim Square. From there M2 heads through western BeyoÃÂlu to à Âià Âhane. It crosses the Golden Horn towards the Old City and terminates in Yenikapñ, a transport hub connecting with M1 line and Marmaray. (The à Âehzadebaà Âñ station on the map above was actually named Vezneciler when the extension south of à Âià Âhane opened on 15 February 2014).
(While it was planned to be only a warehouse and operation center in Seyrantepe during the initial construction, it was built as a station to serve both the region and Rams Park. Due to the limited area of the scissors zone, transactions can only be made up to the Sanayi. It is planned to make arrangements for uninterrupted work between Seyrantepe and Yenikapñ on match days.)
The M2 line in ðstanbul uses both Hyundai Rotem (from 2009 and 2018) and Alstom (this was what was used when the line was opened; though they largely got handed over to M6 when that line got opened, these trains still get used at night and during rush hours.) trains which operate with headways of 5 minutes on the line. The Alstom trains used on this line are derived in design from the S1 through S5 + S8 series used in Caracas Metro, though they have differences in internal furniture; because these trains also serve as the basis for the Hyundai Rotem trains, they're also part of the same family, along with the CAF trains used in M4.
A future extension southwest of Yenikapñ is planned, with five new stations at Kocamustafapaà Âa, Silivrikapñ, Veliefendi, Zeytinburnu and Bakñrköy. A northward extension from Hacñosman, with 3 new stations at ÃÂayñrbaà Âñ, Büyükdere, and Sarñyer is also planned.