Light Rail Gets Okay for Big Expansion

YERUSHALAYIM
The Yerushalayim Light Rail winds its way through the city center. (Kobi Gideon / Flash90)
The Yerushalayim Light Rail winds its way through the city center. (Kobi Gideon / Flash90)

The Yerushalayim Light Rail got the okay for a billion-shekel expansion plan that will add more than 13 miles to the current route, The Jerusalem Post reported.

The regional planning committee approved a NIS 1.1-billion allocation from the Transportation Ministry’s budget to extend the Light Rail line to Hadassah Ein Kerem Medical Center.

The expansion is projected to take two years to complete, resulting in a total of 22.5 miles of tracks.

At present, the line runs from the northern Yerushalayim neighborhood of Neveh Yaakov to Mount Herzl, west of the central city.

“The public transportation system in Yerushalayim is going through a revolution that can be an example to other cities in the country,” said Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz.

“In a few years, hundreds of thousands of residents and the many visitors to the city will enjoy a pleasant and safe ride on the light rail.

“Every day about 30,000 people visit Hadassah Hospital, in addition to the thousands of hospital employees,” he continued. “Railway transport will make the hospital more efficient and help visitors driving there save money collected from all vehicles entering the hospital.”

Construction of new stations and the purchase of dozens of new cars will enable the Light Rail to carry about 250,000 passengers daily, Katz predicted.

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