Protests erupt over Ankara's 'rent road' project through ODTÜ forest

A coalition of urban planners, university alumni, and students has voiced strong opposition to Ankara's ongoing "Bilkent-İncek Ring Road Connection Project." The TMMOB Chamber of City Planners Ankara Branch, ODTÜ Alumni Association, and ODTÜ students jointly condemned the project, arguing that its continuation signifies a persistent focus on asphalt and concrete-centric urban development in the capital.

The protesters highlighted that the project was initially conceived during the tenure of former Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek. They specifically pointed to an incident on the night of September 9, 2017, when heavy machinery entered the ODTÜ Forest, destroying a significant swathe of the natural area for a roughly 4.8-kilometer-long, 50-meter-wide road. This destruction occurred just one day after a protocol for the road was signed between the then-appointed ODTÜ Rector Verşan Kök and Mayor Gökçek.

Further exacerbating concerns, the main plan supporting the road's construction was approved by the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change. This plan included route changes that encroached upon the ODTÜ Forest, designated as a natural protected area. The protesters argue that these plan modifications, which increased the width of Bilkent Boulevard and altered the ODTÜ tunnel road connection, were made without proper scientific analysis and violated public interest and urban planning principles. Legal challenges have been mounted against these changes.

The joint statement directly appealed to the current administration, urging them to abandon the "rent road" insistence that has persisted from the Gökçek era into the current administration led by Mayor Mansur Yavaş. The group emphasized that the road's construction through a protected forest area, especially given its significant width, disregards environmental conservation and sound urban planning practices. They called for the project's immediate termination.