Jerusalem High-Speed Train Is Inaugurated
The first leg of the high-speed train route linking Jerusalem and Tel Aviv was inaugurated in 2018, connecting Jerusalem to Ben-Gurion Airport. The new high-speed train will ultimately reach Tel Aviv from the capital in just 28 minutes. The same journey by car takes approximately an hour in the best of travel circumstances. When electrification of the $2 billion route is completed, the train will travel at speeds of 100 miles per hour, departing from a Jerusalem station that is 260 feet underground and carrying an expected one million passengers per year. The existing train line between the cities originated during the Ottoman period and is a 90-minute journey, and the introduction of the new line is part of a larger campaign to modernize the capital city. These plans also include the $400 million Jerusalem Gateway project, which is developing a new business district at the entrance of the city with 1.6 million square meters of offices, hotels, and commerce that are expected to generate tens of thousands of new jobs.