Throw empty bottles into vending machines and ride the metro cheaper

Istanbul. In the Turkish metropolis, you can now throw plastic bottles into the vending machines provided and thus travel more cheaply on the metro. In Turkey, a new currency has been created to pay for tickets. This helps people who would otherwise not be able to afford a ticket. This "payment option" also promotes environmental protection.

How does this system work in Istanbul?

So-called "reverse vending machines" have been set up throughout Istanbul, into which plastic bottles can be deposited. Throwing in old plastic bottles gives the citizen a monetary value in return. A 0.33 liter plastic bottle yields 2 Turkish cents, a 0.5 liter bottle yields 3 cents and a 1.5 liter plastic bottle yields 6 cents. These cents can then be added to the price of the ticket. A ticket in Istanbul costs 2.60 Turkish lira (260 Turkish cents). Accordingly, you would need about 28 1.5 liter plastic bottles to buy a ticket.

The mayor of Istanbul, Mevlut Uysal, said that the machines track how many bottles each citizen has collected and recycled. Citizens can then not only buy tickets, but are also rewarded with event tickets, such as a visit to the theater.

After Germany and France, Turkey is the largest European producer of commercial and household waste. The Turkish government hopes that the introduction of reverse vending machines will make a positive contribution to environmental protection.

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