School year starts for millions of students in Turkey

ISTANBUL

Millions of students are starting the new school year on Sept. 19 across Turkey after a three-month summer break. Over 18 million students will start the school year, while nearly 900,000 teachers will be on duty. 

The first school term will end on Jan. 20, 2017, and the mid-term break will be between Jan. 23 and Feb. 3, 2017. The second term will start on Feb. 6, 2017, and will end on June 9, 2017. 

Public transportation will be free of charge between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Sept. 19 in order to prevent traffic jams, as nearly 55,000 service buses will be added to the country’s roads. In addition, additional journeys of buses and other means of transport will also be offered.  

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Kadir Topbaş released a statement regarding the start of the school year, with both wishing students and teachers a successful year. Topbaş also urged people to use public transportation.