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== Hitching in ==

Trucks are banned from entering the city during rush hours (morning: ''?'', evening: about 17:00-22:00), and even when they can proceed through the city, there are few places to stop. Therefore it is highly likely that your driver will let you out at the Mahmutbey toll booths. There are two ways to the centre from here.

''Taksim Square in the center of the European part of Istanbul is chosen as a starting point for the upcoming description due to the fact that there the most bus lines of the European side start and end.''

There are several ways to get out of the city centre and onto the main highway. If you stop a car that is not going a long distance, then it is best to aim for the Mahmutbey toll booths in the northwest of Istanbul where the E80 really begins. From here, it is possible to stop long-distance cars and trucks. Strictly speaking, pedestrians are not permitted here; if a bored traffic police officer asks you to leave, but ignore him and feign misunderstanding, and walk a few metres away and thumb.

You can take bus 83O for 1,50 TL from Taksim Square to the big bus station ''Bayrampaşa Otogar'' on the European side, which is just along the motorway to Edirne / Bulgaria. Take the bus to the last stop, get off and walk back to the entrance. From there, you'll be hitching directly along the motorway. A sign works well here, and there is plenty of space for drivers to pull over since a lot of buses and minibuses stop for passengers just outside). While exiting, you'll notice a petrol station to your right that is a possible alternative starting point where you can ask drivers for lifts (or just use the toilet).

Get into the metro at Taksim Square and take a train towards ''Atatürk Oto Sanayi''. This is currently the last station for the trains departing from Taksim. One ticket costs 1,50 TL (~0,75 Euro). At the ''Sanayi Mahallesi'' station (not to be confused with Atatürk Oto Sanayi which is the last station en route), get out of the Metro. You will find yourself along the ''Büyükdere Caddesi'' avenue. Walk along the main street direction north (watch out for big signs that are leading drivers to the motorway to Edirne. After 3-4 min and passing a military camp you'll see the [[on-ramp]]. Unfortunately, there is no way to cross the street from right to left then by attempting suicide, because the main street is mostly full of fast traffic. If you are not brave enough to do so, walk another 10 min further and cross the street over a bridge and walk back the way along the other side.

From Yenikapı, near Sultanahmet, one can take bus 146T and get off at the stop just after the bus turns north into the suburb Başakşehir. From the bus stop, you can walk a couple of hundred metres down to the toll booth (there is a handy gap in the fence).

Take the suburban train (''banliyö treni'') from the very city center (Sirkeci) towards Halkali. It's only 1,50 lira. Get off at ''Küçükçekmece''. If the train station is 6 o'clock, walk in the direction of 12 o'clock in order to find the on ramp towards [[Tekirdag]]. This is the same road that will take you directly to Greece, although you will still be well within the congested motorways of suburban Istanbul. Be aware that you cannot cross this border walking! You have to find somebody to take you across. Knowing [[German]] will help you a lot to explain that you need help to cross the border due to many drivers with a Turkish-German background.

For those who rather not try hitchhiking through the overgrown western suburbs of the city, a slightly more expensive but a lot easier way to follow this westbound route to Greece may be to take the morning train to [[Muratlı]] from Sirkeci station in central Istanbul, and then hitch your way forward to Greece via [[Tekirdağ]] from there. See [[Muratlı]] article for full details.

For going east there are different options:

Take ferry to ''Kadıköy'' on Asian side. Next to the ferry terminal there is a bus terminal where you can take bus 19, 19C or 19Y. Get off at the stop ''Ferhatpaşa'' (you will see a road going in a circle like a big roundabout). From there walk northeast until you get to the motorway O4 Anadolu Otoyolu. There is a fence along the motorway but it has many holes, so getting to the other side is not difficult. Once you get to the parking area, you can ask around or make a big sign and show it at parking area's exit to the drivers passing by on the motorway, so they can stop on a merge lane. There's one small restaurant in the parking area where many drivers stop for a short break.

Get on a ferry to Haydarpaşa (1,50 TL) and from there a suburban train to the last station Gebze (also 1,50 TL). There is only one train line. After you walk up the train station stairs and come to the street, go left and at the intersection turn left again. You'll see a signpost for the Istanbul-Ankara road. Follow the signs, and you can hitch from where the road branches off with the sign "Izmit Ankara". There is little long-distance traffic here, so get a lift going to Izmit and get out at the service station 9 km before Izmit.

Get on the 111, 112 or 200 and stay on the bus almost all the way to the last stop (get off approximately two or three stops before).

If you want to avoid 30km of urban hitch hiking, from the last stop of 112 take bus 134BK (other 134 buses may work as well) which leaves across the road from where 112 ends. Ride until the end and transfer onto 133Ş and ride it until the last stop. You are then in Şekerpınar and can walk the 2km to the main motorway O4 Anadolu Otoyolu.

From ''Taksim'' Square take bus 129T (''Taksim - Üst Bostancı'' line), which, like the other transcontinental bus lines, requires two tickets (3 TL). Get off at the leaf-clover interchange called in Turkish ''Bostancı Köprüsü'' (literally Bostancı Bridge), close to its last stop. You can recognize the interchange by big signs saying ''Bostancı'' and ''İçerenköy'' (besides the usual ''İzmit'' and ''Ankara'' signs) there. Then, after getting off the bus, walk past the interchange until you see a safe shoulder down the road a couple hundred metres away. Start hitching there ready with a [[Signs|sign]] saying at least ‘[[Gebze]]'/'[[Izmit]]’, it’ll make you more visible and look like a total hitchhiker. Drivers around here seem to have some concerns about sharing their car with a stranger and looking like a total hitchhiker seems to somewhat ease their anxiety. However, there are also many minibuses heading for ''Gebze'' on this road, so hiding your sign when they are passing by and shaking your head both sides when its headlights flash (to ask whether you’d like a ride … for a fee) may prevent some of the unwanted attention. Expect to wait at least 30 minutes until you are offered a lift. Morning hours (approx. between 6:30-8:30) are best since the road is congested at that time and vehicles move slowly, which lets the drivers to think more about taking you in. Beware of the motorcycles by the way, which sometimes illegally drive inside the shoulder and literally skim you over.