By Justin Hyatt
The number of bridges linking Europe and Asia might soon rise from two to three. Both Istanbul Mayor Kadir Topbas and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan have claimed that the two bridges now spanning the Bosporus, each 1,510 meters long, are insufficient.
As mayor of Istanbul in 1995, Erdogan was quoted as saying that a third bridge would be "suicide" for Istanbul. But nowadays the 'third' bridge plays a part in the grand North Anatolian highway project, and the government is aggressively pursuing its construction. The scheme, however, is wildly unpopular among city residents, and campaign efforts to stop bridge construction are on the increase.
Major objections to bridge construction are that the city, already with 17 million inhabitants, will grow in population, and that many forests and natural areas will be lost as a result.
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