Jerusalem Light Rail map

With only 1 month until the start of passenger services on the Jerusalem Light Rail this website will be providing details on how passengers will be able to use the new light rail in.

Here is a map of the line, which runs from north Jerusalem to south Jerusalem and includes stops at the central bus station, the city centre along Jaffa Street and the Old City of Jerusalem.

Bike Rental scheme in Tel Aviv to expand to Herzliya, Approval given to improve road access to Jerusalem

Bike Rental scheme in Tel Aviv to expand to Herzliya

Haaretz have reported that Tel Aviv's bike rental scheme is to be expanded to neighbouring city Herzliya.

Herzliya is currently negotiating with http://www.tel-o-fun.co.il/the operator of the bike rental scheme to set up bike rental stations and to construct a cycling path linking Tel Aviv and Herzliya.

Currently in Tel Aviv, there are 5000 subscribers to the bike rental scheme, 90% of whom are residents of Tel Aviv.  The scheme is also seeing more than 2000 bikes rented each day from its 80 stations, with 550 bikes positioned throughout Tel Aviv.

The scheme is at present only available to annual subscribers but daily and weekly subscriptions are expected to be permitted in the near future.  Also by September the number of stations should increase to 150 within Tel Aviv, with 1500 bikes available.



Approval given to improve road access to Jerusalem 


The Interior Ministry this week approved plans to construct a new road (Road 16) to connect Road 1 - the main road into Jerusalem - to the Menahem Begin Highway which will allow commuters to bypass northern and central Jerusalem on their way to southern Jerusalem.

However, as Road 16 will run through the Jerusalem Forest, the approval is being criticised by environmental groups.  The road according to the Jerusalem Post will also included tunnels under the Har Nof and Yefe Nof neighbourhoods of Jerusalem.

Jerusalem Light Rail to start operating on 19 August 2011

The Jerusalem Light Rail will start taking passengers on 19 August 2011.  The tram line which has taken many years to complete and suffered many delays will run through central Jerusalem, including past the Old City of Jerusalem, from Pisgat Zev in northern Jerusalem to Mount Herzl in southern Jerusalem.

While, operations will begin on 19 August, the trains will not be at full speed, as due to delays in reprogramming traffic lights along the route, the light rail will still not have right of way at junctions but will have to wait for the traffic lights to change.  The operator CityPass had hoped to delay the start of operations until the reprogramming of traffic lights were complete, but the Jerusalem Municipality has one out and required passenger operations to begin.

 This could see the travel time along the route increased from the expected 40 minutes to 80 minutes.
It is not known how long the reprogramming will now take and when the trains will be able to go at full speed and have right of way at traffic lights.

Major shake-up in bus transport in the Tel Aviv region has started, Could a cable car make travelling in the Old City of Jerusalem easier?

Major shake-up in bus transport in the Tel Aviv region has started


The beginning of July is seeing major changes to bus routes and schedules in Tel Aviv and it's surrounding area.  The changes include new bus lanes on King George Street, Ibn Gvirol Street, Carlebach Street and Elhanan Street in Tel Aviv.  The changes are meant to improve bus services and reducing waiting time for passengers.


The new schedule will see bus routes in the Tel Aviv, Givatayim, Ramat Gan, Bnei Brak, Bat Yam, Holon and Azur drop from 82 to just 59.  However, buses will now become more frequent on the remaining routes. 


The cost of a ticket is also rising from 6 shekels to 6.40 shekels but will be able to be used on more than one bus within a 90 minute period on all four operators Dan, Egged, Kavim and Metropolin.






Could a cable car make travelling in the Old City of Jerusalem easier?


The Jerusalem Post has an article about early discussions about installing a cable car in the Old City of Jerusalem to make travel into and through the tourist attractions easier.

How to travel to or from Ben Gurion International Airport in Israel

With the summer tourism season approaching below is a guide for people travelling to or from Ben Gurion Airport.

Taxi Service


Licensed taxis pick up passengers from outside the arrivals hall at Terminal 3.
Taxi drivers are required by law to use the meter on all trips.  There is a 25% surcharge for all trip between 9pm and 5:30am (and from 4pm on Friday afternoon and holiday eves.)
There is also a 3 shekel charge for each suitcase.

'Sherut' Minibus taxi service 

These are licensed communal taxis which can carry up to 10 people to different locations.
They also operate from the taxi stand outside the arrivals hall at Terminal 3.
There are two companies:

Nesher - to Jerusalem 
Amal - to Haifa and northern Israel


To get a Nesher sherut from Jerusalem to the airport, a journey can be ordered by telephone (02 6257227) 24 hours before your required journey.   The cost of a journey is 56 shekels.  There is a service every hour and your pick-up will depend on where in Jerusalem you are departing from to the airport.

The Amal Sherut from Haifa can be reserved by telephone (04  866 2324) and the cost is 65 shekels from Haifa to the airport.



Bus


The airport bus station is located near Gates 21 and 23 on the second floor of terminal 3.  Bus transfers can be taken from there to the bus station in Airport city.

To travel between the Airport City bus station and :

Jerusalem - take the 947 bus (32.40 shekels)
Haifa - take the 947 bus (36 shekels)


Train


The train station is at a very convenient location, next to the the Arrivals Greeters Hall, with access to the station by elevator, escalator and stairs.  Ben Gurion Airport station is on the Tel Aviv to Modiin train line and access is easy by train to many parts of the country, especially Tel Aviv and Haifa.


Car Rental Procedure at the Airport


The car rental companies’ counters are on the first floor of the East Gallery in the Greeters’ Hall and are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The pick-up and return of the vehicle is at the rental companies’ 500-space parking lot on the ground floor of the East Building opposite Terminal 3.

Rental Car Pick-Up: Arriving passengers should go to the rental company’s counter and after making the necessary arrangements should proceed to the parking lot via the connecting corridor between the terminal and the parking lot. They should then take the elevator or stairs down to Level G and follow the signs to the rental company’s lot.

Rental Car Return: Rental cars should be returned to the parking lot opposite Terminal 2 (internal flights terminal). The rental companies provide transportation to Terminal 3. Cars can be refilled on the spot when they are returned.