Jerusalem 5800 English

The Metropolitan Jerusalem Master Plan

north and south of Jerusalem to find jobs

there, without the difficulties of time and

distance preventing them from accepting

these jobs. Additionally, this train line

will strengthen the process of Jerusalem

becoming the central axis of the State of

Israel.

There is also no train going eastward

from Jerusalem today. This line would be

able to connect Jerusalem with Jericho and

the future airport at Horkania, going on to

cross the Jordan River and reach Amman,

the capital of Jordan. The existence of

such a line would be critical to making the

airport worth its investment, and would

significantly improve tourism in the region,

as many tourists would like to incorporate

a visit to Jerusalem with a visit to Jordan –

a trend we see currently as well.

Construction of such a line stands in

the face of a serious engineering issue: the

differences in height between the Horkania

valley and Jerusalem can reach up to 800

meters. Considering the distance of 20

kilometers and the (unlikely) presumption

of a uniform slope, there would be a 4%

incline. Israel Railways has been planned

to work on a 1.5 – 2% incline at most.

Laying tracks suited to Israel Railways

will require making the route significantly

longer by making it a winding route,

incurring great cost, causing serious

environmental damage, and harming the

landscape. There are more modern trains,

manufactured by a Canadian company,

that can run on an incline of up to 6%.

Using such a train would allow for laying

down a route, from Jerusalem westward, of

reasonable length, and even located parallel

to the road that is there now, keeping the

environmental damage down. This train

line would connect the new international

airport in the Horkania valley to the

new train station in Jerusalem (under the

central bus station in the center of town).

Going crosstown would be done using

an underground tunnel. Travelers wishing

to go on westward would have to switch

trains at the Jerusalem station, so, for

the long-term, having the train run even

further westward to Tel Aviv should be

considered.

Transportation

ir transportation is expected to

grow and advance over coming

decades. New aircraft will be

introduced along with advanced engines

that consume less fuel. Air travel will

become an even more central means of

long and medium distance travel than

they are today. A gradual rise in air travel

for business and pleasure by Israelis

and the anticipated rise in tourism to

Israel will both require the expedited

development of modern and accessible

airports, as well as transportation linking

them to residential locations and tourist

sites around the country.

Today, there is one large international

airport in Israel – the Ben Gurion

Airport. Ben Gurion’s current top

aviation capacity is limited to est. 16-

18 million travelers annually when

accounting for the completion of all

scheduled upgrades. There are already

some 12-18 million people traveling

through Ben Gurion each year, including

6-8 million tourists from overseas and

7-10 million Israelis. The steady rise in

the number of yearly travelers passing

through Ben Gurion will put stress on

Israeli air transportation in the near

future. The time needed to plan and

build an airport is estimated at 10-11

years – meaning such an airport, in the

best case, could not be up and running

before 2026.

The steady rise in the number of

yearly travelers passing through Ben

Gurion will put stress on Israeli air

transportation in the near future.

The Airport

Building an additional airport in Israel is a genuine need, and doing so

adjacent to Jerusalem seems a most natural and sensible solution, which

would exploit the Jerusalem advantage, encourage economic growth and

contribute to the entire country’s development.

The Alternatives

The Israeli government recognized these

constraints and assigned the Ministers

of Transportation and Security with the

task of presenting a proposal for the

location of a new airport to complement

Ben Gurion. Due to a lack of viable sites

for the airport in Israel’s central region,

current proposals are to establish a civilian

airport in the north or south based on

existing military airbases. Utilizing the

infrastructure from an existing military

airport would lessen the time needed for

planning and building, as well as decrease

direct costs. However, it would require

the construction of fast, efficient, and

expensive transportation systems from it

to the center of the country. The proposed

alternatives are expropriation from the

IDF of the Nevatim base near Be’er Sheva

or building a new airport in the Megiddo

Valley.

Establishing an international airport

on the current location of the Nevatim

base by Be’er Sheva could be a boon

The steady rise in

the number of yearly

travelers passing

through Ben Gurion will

put stress on Israeli air

transportation in the

near future.

The new train line from

Tel Aviv to Jerusalem

would connect Jerusalem

with the central region

of the country, but

future nationwide train

infrastructure would

have to be much more

comprehensive, and iron

tracks would have to reach

metropolitan Jerusalem

from all over the country.

Building the bridge over

the Zurim Valley. 2013

Transportation