Kapıkule
Kapıkule is the name of the Turkish border crossing point in Edirne Province on the border of Turkey and Bulgaria. Its counterpart on the Bulgarian side is Kapitan Andreevo. Together, they form the busiest land border crossing point in Europe.
Kapıkule | |
|---|---|
Kapıkule Border Crossing Turkey to Bulgaria on the state road D-100 | |
Kapıkule Location of Kapıkule in Turkey Kapıkule Kapıkule (Marmara) | |
| Coordinates: 41°42′28.6″N 26°23′31.1″E | |
| Country | Turkey |
| Region | Marmara Region |
| Province | Edirne |
| District | Edirne |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (TRT) |
| Postal code | 22770 |
| Area code | 0284 |
Kapıkule, situated on the State road D100 (D.100) and European route E80, is also an important gateway for cargo transport to the countries east of Turkey. The Asian Highway Network route AH1 terminates at the border. Other land border checkpoints in western Turkey are the neighboring Hamzabeyli (on the D.535) and Dereköy (on the D.555) to Bulgaria and İpsala (on the D.110, E84) to Greece. The Kapıkule railway station, built in 1971, is located to the north of the town and handles more traffic than any other railway border crossing in Turkey.
In the dawn of the Revolutions of 1989, the Kapıkule border crossing saw a mass exodus of Turks fleeing the forced assimilation laws of the mid to late 1980s in the People's Republic of Bulgaria into Turkey.