82-83 / 108
Transportation
be 80 kilometers from Gush Dan and 120
km to Jerusalem. When the valley railway
is done, it will be possible to link it to the
airport and improve its transportation
accessibility. Another advantage would
be the ability to serve the populations of
Judea and Samaria (relatively easily), who
could reach it via Jenin (assuming political
issues are resolved), either by car or by
the train which is meant to run along the
mountainside.
Why Jerusalem?
The forecast for significant growth and
maximizing existing potential of some
10 million foreign tourists annually to
metropolitan Jerusalem depends on, among
other things, the availability of convenient,
competitive air transportation in close
The forecast for
significant growth and
maximizing existing
potential of some 10
million foreign tourists
annually to metropolitan
Jerusalem depends on,
among other things, the
availability of convenient
air transportation in
close proximity.
The Metropolitan Jerusalem Mater Plan
83
An airport in the heart of the desert. A
bird’s-eye view of the Horkania Valley
Airport
Transportation
for development in the Negev. Linking
the airport to the central region via a
transportation system that would include
roads and railways – which would be
imperative to the airport’s existence –
would improve the general connectivity
between the Be’er Sheva region and the
country’s center – Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
This alternative has several drawbacks.
The first is the expected objection on the
part of the military to the expropriation
of Nevatim – one of its largest and most
important air force bases for civilian
use. Second, this airport would not be
accessible to the north or center of the
country. In most of the world, it is
standard for complementary or alternative
airports to be up to 60 kilometers from
the main airports, but the one in Be’er
Sheva would be much further away from
the populous Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Even travel via Route 6 would be over
100 kilometers to Gush Dan and 140
kilometers to Jerusalem. Moreover, there
will be difficulties making services available
to the Arab population of Judea and
Samaria and in countries east of Israel.
The Megiddo region could also house
an airport. The Megiddo Valley is large
enough to contain an international
airport which would be relatively close
to metropolitan Haifa – the third largest
metropolis in Israel. But even that airport
would be too far from where most of the
population is concentrated – Tel Aviv and
Jerusalem – and even further for people
from the south. Travel to the central region
would be via Routes 65 and 6. It would
82
The Metropolitan Jerusalem Master Plan