Transport in Israel

Ayalon Highway, Tel Aviv

Transportation in Israel is based mainly on private motor vehicles and bus service and continuously upgrading train service. Demands of population growth, political factors, the Israel Defense Forces, tourism and increased traffic set the pace. All facets of transportation in Israel are under the supervision of the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety.

Highways

Main article: Roads in Israel

Israel's road network spans 18,096 km of roads, of which 230 km are classified as freeways.^{[citation needed]} The network spans the whole country.

Bus service

Egged Bus cooperative

Buses are the country's main form of public transport. In 2009, bus passenger trips totaled approximately 654 million. In the same year, 16 companies operated buses for public transport, totaling 5,939 buses and 8,470 drivers. The Egged Bus Cooperative is Israel's largest bus company, and operates routes throughout the country. Bus routes in some areas are operated by smaller carriers, the largest being the Dan Bus Company, operating routes in Gush Dan. Kavim is the next largest.

Bus stations in Israel, other than standalone bus stops, come in two types: terminals (masof, pl. mesofim) and central stations (tahana merkazit). Each terminal serves a number of routes, usually over a dozen, while a central station may serve over a hundred bus routes. The largest central bus terminal in the country is the Tel Aviv Central Bus Station, which is also the second largest bus terminal in the world.

Israel also has a share taxi service (Hebrew - Sherut), run by several private companies, depending on location, in addition to regular taxicab services. The shared sherut service usually appears a yellow minivans and travel along the same path as the normal buses with identical route numbers. For a slightly higher price, the shared sherut service allows passengers to both hop on and hop off anyway along the path of travel. During peak travel, often the time of travel can be shortened as the number of passengers is significantly small compared to normal bus services. Some routes continue to travel through the night and on Shabbat providing transport needs to the population when normal buses services cease. The beginning and end of the sherut vans may differ from the Tachana Makazit and on the weekends and evenings, the routes can also be altered for some services.

On August 5, 2010, the Ministry of Transport opened a website that contained information about public bus and train routes in the country. Previously, information was given only by the individual public transit operators.

Bus rapid transit

One bus rapid transit system is being built in Haifa, called the Metronit, which will consists of three lines connecting Haifa to its suburbs. In addition, the blue line of the Jerusalem Light Rail system is currently operating as a bus rapid transit system, and will be replaced by the Jerusalem Light Rail in the following years.^{[citation needed]}

Train service

Israel Railway train

Main article: Israel Railways

• Total: 1001.4 km 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ¹⁄₂ in) (standard gauge)

Many of Israel's railway lines were constructed before the founding of the state during Ottoman and British rule. The first line was the Jaffa–Jerusalem railway, followed by the Jezreel Valley railway, which formed part of the greater Hejaz railway. World War I brought the creation of multiple new lines out of military needs: Portions of what is now the Coastal railway were built simultaneously by the Turkish and British and later merged during the British Mandate. Southern lines were also built by the warring states—from the north by the Ottomans, and from Rafah in the west by the British.

Beginning in the mid-1960s, railway development stagnated, and a number of lines (notably, the Jezreel Valley railway and most of the Eastern railway) were abandoned altogether. Development restarted in the 1990s, the opening of Tel Aviv's Ayalon railway in 1993 signaling a new era of rail development. Lines under construction in the 2000s include the high-speed railway to Jerusalem, an extension of the coastal railway directly from Tel Aviv to Ashdod through the northern Shephelah, and a line from Ashkelon to Beersheba via Sderot, Netivot and Ofakim, as well as a complete reconstruction of the line from Lod to Beersheba.

Light rail/subway

Two light rail systems are in advanced planning stages or under construction in Israel - one in Tel Aviv and one in Jerusalem. A subway also exists in Haifa, called Carmelit. It is listed in Guinness World Records as the shortest subway system in the world, being the second smallest track network (after the Tünel in Istanbul,) but being the smallest "system" by virtue of being the only urban rail network in the city.

Air transport

Ben Gurion International Airport

Israel has 48 airports, the largest and most well known being Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) located near Tel Aviv, which is used by most international flights to Israel. Flights from Israel travel to North America, Europe, the Far East, and neighboring countries in the Middle East. Domestic flights are available between Tel Aviv and Haifa, and the southern city of Eilat. Some international charter flights land at Ovda International Airport. In 2007, passengers on international flights surpassed the 10 million mark. Boeing estimates that 60-80 new aircraft will be purchased by Israeli airlines over the next 20 years.

According to the Israel Civil Aviation Authority, as of 31 January 2008, Israel's civil aircraft fleet consisted of 53 aircraft; 47 passenger planes, 5 freighters and one convertible. 41 of these were Boeing jets, 2 Airbus, and 10 turbo-prop produced by ATR and Dash. Airlines include El Al Israel Airlines, Sun d'Or International Airlines, Arkia Israel Airlines and Israir Airlines.

Israel has 30 airports with paved runways, 18 unpaved landing strips, and 3 heliports.

Ports and harbors

Mediterranean Sea

Ships in Haifa port

• Ashdod Port
• Ashkelon
• Haifa Port
• Herzliya
• Tel Aviv

Red Sea

On the Gulf of Eilat:

• Eilat (Eilat Port)

Merchant marine

• Total: 18 ships (with a volume of 1,000 gross register tons (GRT) or over) totaling 716,382 GRT/845,053 metric tons deadweight (DWT)
• Ships by type: Cargo ship 1, Chemical tanker 1, Container ship 16 (2006)

Many ships owned and operated by Israeli companies operate under foreign flags of convenience. Israel's Zim Integrated Shipping Services is one of the largest shipping companies in the world.^{[citation needed]}

Cable cars

Israel's longest cable car - the Manara Cliffs cable car

There are currently six tourist and leisure oriented cable car systems in Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories: In Haifa connecting Bat Galim on the coast to the Stella Maris observation deck and monastery atop Mount Carmel. In Kiryat Shmona, linking it to Menara 400 meters above the town. There are several chairlifts and cable cars in the Mount Hermon ski resort in the Golan Heights. The historic site of Masada, near the Dead Sea, has a cable car system to enable tourists to quickly reach to mountain top site. In the Superland amusement park near Rishon LeZion; and in the Rosh HaNikra grottoes site, a chalk cliff and cavernous tunnels on the Mediterranean cost. A public transport-oriented cable car is being developed in Haifa—the Haifa Cable Car.

Sustainable transportation

There is a growing awareness in Israel that the common use of private automobiles is having many negative effects. An effort is now being made to make Israel a "greener" country in its modes of transportation. There is increasing collaboration between transportation professionals, politicians, and environmental organizations to work towards increasing the accessibility of public transportation, cycling, and walking in order to lower the use of private vehicles. One organization that works towards this goal is Transport Today and Tomorrow. Based in Tel Aviv, this organization works with a dedicated community of professionals and activists whose aim is to make public transit the dominant mode of travel and commuting in Israel.

Segway

In 2006, the Segway scooter was approved for use on sidewalks and other pedestrian designated locations, as well as roads that have no sidewalks, obstructed sidewalks or sidewalks lacking curb cuts. The user must be over 16 years old. No license is required. The maximum allowed speed is 13 km/h (8.1 mph), enforced by electronic restriction put in place by the importer. Companies offering tours of Jerusalem use the second generation i2 model, equipped with Lean Steer Technology that facilitates ski-like steering.

External links

• Ministry of Transport
• General bus route information website, encompassing numerous companies
• Transport Today and Tomorrow
• http://www.walk.org.il/ Walking Toward the Future
• http://transportation.dofinity.com/ Green Commuting