The three Tel Aviv railway stations that were closed last week for infrastructure works opened again this morning, 48 hours ahead of schedule. The three stations are University, Savidor-Central, and Hashalom.
Israel Police announced the expected reopening of the stations yesterday afternoon, but Israel Railways waited a few hours before making an announcement in order to make certain that the lines and systems were working properly.
The closure of train routes last week caused heavy congestion on the roads, but since the roads are generally crowded on Sunday morning in any case, the reopening will not have a very noticeable effect. Nevertheless, tens of thousands of travelers, among them soldiers returning to their bases from weekend leave, will be able to choose to go by train.
The Ministry of Transport laid on extra bus services last week to cope with the disruption to rail transport and expressed itself satisfied with the result. The ministry and Israel Railways will be reviewing the effect of the closure, as further such closures are scheduled, one at the end of this year and another next year. The closures are in order to enable Israel Railways to carry out work in preparation for the opening of the new Tel Aviv-Jerusalem rapid rail link and for electrification of the rail system.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 25, 2016
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016