Transport in Jerusalem

Transport in Jerusalem is characterized by a well-developed inter-city network and an emerging, developing intra-city network. Ben Gurion International Airport serves as Jerusalem's closest international airport. Egged bus lines and Israel Railways connect the city of Jerusalem to much of the rest of the country, and a high-speed rail line to Tel Aviv is currently under construction. Within the city, the roads, rather than the rails, are the primary mode of transportation. However, the Jerusalem Light Rail is expected to alter that image over the next ten years.

Roads

Begin Boulevard is western Jerusalem's inner city expressway. It runs south to north from Manahat (Malha) to Ramot, where it merges into the Modi'in-Tel Aviv highway (Highway 443). Other major north-south arteries include: the Talpiot-Atarot route (Highway 60), which traverses the center of the city near the Green Line that, "de facto", separates the former East and West Jerusalem; and Herzl Boulevard, which begins at the northern entrance of the city and continues south via Mount Herzl and the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial. It then merges into additional routes that lead to the southwestern quarters. The Golomb-Herzog-Ben-Zvi route also links the southern quarters with the city center.

Running east through the city center, Jaffa Road connects the Jaffa Gate of the Old City as well as the central-eastern neighbourhoods and the northwestern city entrance to Highway 1. Highway 1 bypasses the city-centre to the north as Yigal Yadin Boulevard, and links Ma'ale Adummim and the northeastern neighborhoods to Begin Boulevard near Ramot.

Construction is progressing on parts of a 35-kilometer (22-mi) ring road around the city, fostering faster connection between the suburbs and the city center.cite news|url=http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?apage=1&cid=1137605873879&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |publisher=The Jerusalem Post |date=2006-01-19 |accessdate=2007-03-17 |last=Burstein |first=Nathan |title=Running rings around us] [cite news|url=http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1180527974291&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Their way or the highway? |author=Gil Zohar |publisher=The Jerusalem Post |date=May 31, 2007 |accessdate=2007-06-11] The eastern half of the project was conceptualized decades ago, but reaction to the proposed highway is still mixed.

Buses

Jerusalem Central Bus Station is Jerusalem's intercity bus station. It is served mainly by Egged buses and by a single joint Egged - Dan bus line, while Superbus and Margalit, serving Modi'in, have their stops close by. City buses in the Jewish and Israeli areas are run by Egged, which runs close to 100 bus lines throughout the city and its suburbs.

In cooperation with City Tour and the Jerusalem Municipality, Egged operates Bus 99 a special double decked open-air bus line that passes through all central tourist attractions in Jerusalem. Using the same daily ticket the passengers can get off the bus at any of 27 bus stops any time during operation of the route. The full tour lasts for about two hours. Recorded explanations, broadcast through the bus are available in eight different languages. [ [http://www.gojerusalem.com/SitePage.aspx?siteID=633&FirstCat=Travel&SecCat=Bus/Cabs/Train&FirstCatVal=6&SecCatVal=126' Bus Travel in Jerusalem] ]

Palestinian-run buses serve the city's Arab neighborhoods as well as Palestinian towns in the West Bank and Israeli Arab towns. This system is based out of the East Jerusalem Central Bus Station on Sultan Suleiman Street, though buses also leave from outside the Damascus Gate of the Old City.

The Egged and Non-Jewish city bus networks are almost completely separated. There are only a handful of bus stops that both companies serve. Arab residents of Jerusalem do use Egged buses frequently, but Jewish residents rarely use the Arab buses, in part because while Arabs do regularly visit the Israeli center of town, Jews do not frequently come to the Arab parts of the city.Fact|date=February 2007

Railway

Israel Railways operates train service to Southern Jerusalem with 2 stops: Jerusalem Malha near the Malha Mall and the Biblical Zoo. Very few trains stop at the latter stop. The line was out of use for seven years because of deteriorating conditions and was restored on April 9 2005. Jerusalem Malha is a new station which replaces the historical Khan Station at Remez Square near the Old City. The train ride from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem takes about 80 minutes.

The existing rail line serving Jerusalem began operating in 1892. A brand new high-speed rail link is currently under construction, which will run from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem via Ben Gurion Airport and terminate at a new underground station - "Binyanei HaUmah", located between the Jerusalem Central Bus Station and the International Convention Centre. It is anticipated that the new rail link will open in 2011, with an expected transit time from Tel Aviv of less than 30 minutes. The first line of the Jerusalem Light Rail network will be completed early in 2009, and erection of Santiago Calatrava's Chords Bridge over Jaffa Road is nearly complete. The first line is at the height of its construction and is slated to begin operating from Pisgat Ze'ev in the northeast through, French Hill and Jaffa Road to the Central Bus Station and the southwestern neighborhoods early in 2009 [ [http://www.rakevetkala-jerusalem.org.il/images/Eng_brochure.pdf Jerusalem Light Rail — Mass Transit System] (PDF)] Unusual for a city with a population of over 700,000, Jerusalem never had a previous first generation tramway network, although, before the war, one was proposed but was cancelled for political reasons huh.

Airports

Atarot Airport is Jerusalem's airport, but was closed to civilian traffic in 2000 due to security concerns arising from the Al-Aqsa Intifada, [ [http://www.jewishjournal.com/home/preview.php?id=6648 An Intifada Casualty Named Atarot] Larry Derfner, "The Jewish Journal", 23 March 2001] and was later placed under IDF control during 2001. [ [http://www.kokhavivpublications.com/2001/israel/jul/27/0107272234s.html Jerusalem's Atarot Airport handed over to the IDF] Zohar Blumenkrant, "Ha'aretz", 27 July 2001] Ben Gurion International Airport, 40 km northwest of the city, serves as the primary international air transport hub for both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. As the largest of the nation's four international airports (the others located in Haifa, Eilat and Ovda, though the former two are unable to handle the largest aircraft), Ben Gurion is Israel's busiest airport, serving nine million passengers annually. [cite news|title=Ask the Pilot |url=http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2006/06/09/askthepilot189/index1.html |last=Smith |first=Patrick |date=2006-06-09 |publisher=Salon |accessdate=2007-03-14]

References