Building information modeling for urban transport infrastructure management: International evidence and the Turkish perspective

Urban transport assets remain in public service for decades, but building information modeling (BIM) can support their management only when useable information is specified, delivered and maintained. This comparative qualitative study examines international and Turkish evidence on these conditions. Web of Science, Scopus, TR Dizin, DergiPark and the YÖK National Thesis Centre were searched in 2026 for English or Turkish records published in 2016-2026, supplemented by websites, a journal hand-search and backward citation searching. Of 1925 screened records, 632 were potentially eligible. All 28 Turkish-setting records were sought in full text and 29 international records were sampled purposively. Forty-two studies (45 reports) and six official documents were analyzed with a best-fit framework approach on three axes: public leadership and client capability, data standards and interoperability, and life-cycle information continuity. Both groups document exchange problems, construction-stage quantity, cost and payment uses, and handover gaps. Turkish sources detail İstanbul metro contracts and delivery, while international cases test owner-side requirements, acceptance and record linking. Measured outputs concern design, construction and information quality. No inspected full text establishes a measured operational outcome. The comparison suggests five decisions concerning requirements, contracts, acceptance, identifiers and updating. Purposive international selection, concentration of Turkish evidence in metro theses and incomplete full-text access limit transferability.