Israel Railways inaugurated train services from Netivot station in the Negev today. The region's residents will be able to travel free in one direction for the first 90 days of the service. Netivot is the southern point in a line that travels to Tel Aviv via Sderot, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Yavne, Rishon Lezion, Bat Yam and Holon. The line from Ashkelon to Sderot was opened in December 2013.
Minister of Transport Yisrael Katz attended today's dedication ceremony.
There are 20 trains in each direction daily (Sunday to Thursday) with journey time from Tel Aviv to Netivot just over an hour.
Railway cars traveling to Sderot and Netivot are especially reinforced to protect passengers from rockets fired from the nearby Gaza Strip.
Israel Railways is currently building the line further south and new stations will also open in Ofakim and the line will eventually link up with Beersheva.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 15, 2015
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