- Route 899 (Israel)
Route 899 is an east-west regional
highway in theUpper Galilee in northernIsrael . For almost its entire length of 63 km it proceeds parallel to the nearby border between Israel andLebanon . In Israel, Route 899 is commonly known as the "highway of the north" (Hebrew: כביש הצפון, "Kevish HaTzafon").History
The road was paved in 1937 as part of the efforts to suppress the
Great Arab Revolt . After the road was paved, a fence was placed alongside the road called the "northern fence," which was completed in July 1938. This fence continued south from the area ofMetzudat Koah toward LakeKinneret . On the side of the road were placedTaggart fortresses, which are now located inYa'ara ,Shomra ,Sasa ,Avivim andMetzudat Koah . Sixteenpillbox es were built alongside the road between the fortresses. Under the control of theBritish Mandate in Palestine access to the road was not open, and it required special permission. The road began alongside the villageBasa , what is nowBetzet and the cityShlomi , and ended at the point next toMetzudat Koah , while it passed near the large Arab settlements. The road was paved several kilometers away from the border withLebanon . The northern fence was taken down in 1942, but the fortresses and pillboxes remained along the length of the road.The road today
The present-day path of the road is mostly parallel to the path of the old road of the British Mandate, but it differs in a number of locations. The road underwent many renovations and improvements. In a number of locations on the road there are signs pointing to the "old northern road", to sections of a few kilometers that pass just north of the present-day road, and return to merge into the same road. The national transportation authority sometimes prepares new sections that pass along the backsides of the northern settlements, thus making the road more distant from the border between Israel and Lebanon, and enabling access to the communities from the south, away from the border and toward the majority of Israel's area.
The "northern route" is numbered 899 in the national highway numbering system. It begins in the west at
Betzet junction, next to theMediterranean shore between Rosh HaNikra andAkhziv , where it meets Highway 4. The road climbs viaShefa Valley and turns south toEven Menachem andNetu'a . It meets Highway 89 at Hiram junction nearSasa , and afterward follows the path ofNahal Dishon . AfterMalkia the road descends intoKadesh Valley and splits away from the international border with Lebanon. AfterMetzudat Koah the road slopes precipitously downward toward theHula Valley and ends at Koah junction, where it meets Highway 90.Junctions and interchanges on the route
ee also
*
List of highways in Israel
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.