Historic moment Saturday evening: the train line opened between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv

An historic moment was recorded on Saturday evening as the new train line opened between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. So far, the train has only traveled between the capital and Ben Gurion Airport, where another train had to be replaced. From now on, it will continue on its way to the defense station and will soon continue to Tel Aviv Central Station - Savidor. The new route allows the train to go the distance in only half an hour, compared to the one and a half hours in the old line, whose course goes up and down the mountain windings, including the replacement at Beit Shemesh.
To enable the high speed over 56 miles of railroad route, more than half of the route consists of tunnels and bridges. In them, a tunnel is 11.6 kilometers long which is the longest in Israel, a bridge 1.25 kilometers long which is the longest in Israel, and a bridge about 90 meters above the ground which is the highest bridge in Israel. Also, the Yitzhak Navon Nation Station in Jerusalem was excavated at a depth of 80 meters underground, making it the deepest station in Israel and one of the deepest heavy rail stations in the world.
The official project cost of the line is about NIS 6.9 billion, but some estimate it to be about NIS 9 billion. The old line continues to operate in parallel, mainly to serve Beit Shemesh passengers, as well as freight train traffic.
The first train to Tel Aviv departed at 21:56, following a few weeks of lectures and a festive trip hosted by Bezalel Smutrich and Foreign Minister Israel Katz only on Wednesday.
 More than three million trips have been made to the Jerusalem Expressway, which opened about a year ago, since its opening in September 2018. Every day, an average of ten thousand passengers travel by line. During demand hours, two trains are currently traveling every hour in each direction, with the number of passengers on the train currently limited to only 400 passengers per trip. In the coming months, when the railroad's electrical work is completed in Ayalon, the restriction is expected to be gradually phased out and the possible number of passengers on the line will increase to about a thousand.
"Connecting the train between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv will allow more passengers to leave the vehicle at home and skip traffic on the way to work, study or vacation," welcomes the accomplished Shmarit Notman, CEO of 15 Minutes - the Passenger for Better Public Transportation, which also mentions: And the construction of the line has taken heavy prices from Israel Railways and its passengers, and we hope that now that this important phase is complete, the railway administration will be able to allocate more resources to make service on all routes more accurate and pleasant. "
At Wednesday's press conference, Minister Smutrich thanked his predecessor Israel Katz, the Ministry of Transport and Israel Railways, for the long-term vision and vision in establishing the highway to Jerusalem. "It's a morning of excitement. In the days when we talk about Israel I and Israel II and the state of Tel Aviv and the state of Jerusalem we build a bridge," he said. "With all the controversies, no buffer can be created, but roads and trains will be built because we are one people," Smutrich added.
Minister Katz said it was a holiday for him. "After years of hard work and struggles, Jerusalem connects to Tel Aviv," he said. "There is tremendous significance here in strengthening Jerusalem and strengthening the state. This is how Palestine is being built, just like in 1948," Minister Katz added. Managing Director Michael Meixner added that this was an important achievement for Israel Railways, which is a lever for rail development programs, "replacing diesel-powered mobile fleet with modern green-powered trains."
The significant test of the train to Jerusalem if you can capture more passengers from the bus lines. Two lines are expected to be greatly damaged from the commencement of service of the train. These are Egged's 480 and 405 lines. Line 480 is the most profitable Egged cooperative. The company intends to offer passengers service to the Jerusalem neighborhoods to make the line more attractive. Line 405 has long lost its attractiveness. The line between Jerusalem and Ben Gurion Airport will also be damaged. It's a 24-hour line. The question is whether the line to Jerusalem will also operate at night, as the line between Haifa and Ben Gurion Airport operates at all hours.

Photo: Israel rail p.r