The Jerusalem-Tel Aviv high-speed rail link is set to start operating from 30 March this year, Israeli Transport Minister Yisrael Katz announced.
The new electric train is capable of running at a speed of 160km/h and can carry up to 1,000 passengers, reported media sources.
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It is initially scheduled to operate from Binyenei Ha’uma station in Jerusalem Central Bus Station to the Hagana train station in Tel Aviv via Ben Gurion airport every half an hour on a single line.
The frequency of operations will be increased using both tracks of the line at a later date.
Passengers possessing a Rav-Kav multi-ride public transport card will be able to travel free for the first three months of operation.
Construction work on the $1.8bn Tel Aviv-Jerusalem rail project originally began in 2001.
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By GlobalDataThe line is expected to serve more than four million passengers per year following the commencement of full operations.
Katz was quoted by media sources as saying: “When I started my job, I instructed the Ministry of Transportation and Israel Railways to act immediately to advance the high-speed railway in Jerusalem, after four years in which the project was stuck.”
The minister is also expected to lead a test run along a section of the rail line between Sha’ar Hagai and Modi’in, reported jpost.com.
