For all the natural and historical beauties it offers, the positive aspects of Istanbul, Turkey’s most populated city, are offset by exasperating traffic. Whether during rush hour or due to a minor accident blocking roads, traffic is an inevitable part of life for millions. But there may be worse in store for the city.

In one year, 247,415 new vehicles were registered in the city, according to figures by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat). Now, there are more than 4.6 million vehicles of all types in the city, corresponding to about one-fourth of the population of over 15 million people. Experts warn the increasing number of vehicles will have an impact on public health and that traffic could soon become unbearable. In a country with more than 25 million vehicles on the road, such a high concentration of vehicles in a relatively small city with a tremendous population is troubling.

Professor Selahattin Incecik, an air quality specialist from the International Union of Air Pollution Prevention and Environmental Protection Associations (IUAPPA), says more vehicles mean greater concentrations of harmful particles in the air and urged people to wear protective masks while outdoors, especially in busy streets. Professor Mustafa Ilıcalı, an expert on transportation systems from Istanbul Ticaret University, ties the surge in the number of vehicles to the COVID-19 pandemic and says if the surge continues, traveling times in the city will reach an "unbearable" level.

The majority of vehicles in the city, more than 3.1 million, are cars, while minibuses follow suit with a total of 96,814.

Incecik says particles spewed by vehicles are the main pollutants spoiling air quality and that their levels have remained high throughout the year, posing a "significant risk for health."

"Diesel cars are the main source of particles. More than 40% of cars in Istanbul are diesel cars and their numbers are growing," he told Demirören News Agency (DHA) on Monday.

Air pollution levels in Istanbul had significantly dropped as the pandemic raged but as of 2021, the city has returned to pre-pandemic levels of pollution. Data from Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) air quality monitoring stations shows nitrogen dioxide levels in the air between Jan. 1 and Nov. 12, 2021, increased by 5%, compared to the same period in 2020. Although natural gas use is prevalent in the city, emissions from coal burned in households and massive traffic were among the contributors to the high level of air pollution.

For his part, Ilıcalı says number of vehicles grew with the outburst of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with people preferring their own vehicles over mass transit for fear of infection. "After a while, the traffic may come to a complete standstill," he stressed. He pointed out that an increase in the number of privately owned vehicles would also increase the number of traffic violations, especially parking violations that slow down traffic. Ilıcalı underlined that the traffic particularly peaks at 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

He says a change in working hours may serve as a solution to the problem. During the early days of the pandemic, the public sector had introduced alternate working hours but the private sector largely shied away from the practice, although remote working options became widespread. Still, a decline in the number of coronavirus cases appears to signal a return to traffic levels seen prior to the pandemic.

The city seeks to expand its mass transit network to reduce traffic, through new metro services in particular. Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu hinted that there may be more radical solutions to ease the traffic, especially in the city's historic peninsula on the European side where popular tourist attractions from the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque to the Spice Bazaar are located. Speaking at an event on urban mobility on Monday, Imamoğlu said they were planning to limit vehicle entry to the peninsula or charge high fees. The mayor said in terms of mass transit, buses make up the majority of the city's network at 42%, ahead of metro services that the municipality plans to prioritize in the coming years, aiming to boost metro travel to the primary method of mass transportation.

The mayor said Istanbul will have 17 more metro services, including extensions of current lines as well as new lines, in the future and that they are also planning to provide 10,000 electric bicycles to residents of the city that can be rented. The mayor added that they will also soon introduce "Hızray" or Speed Rail, a fast metro train project which is expected to connect the city's easternmost parts with its westernmost districts. "It will connect all three airports together too," he said.