Israel’s National Infrastructure Committee is expected to fast-track approval of plans filed with the committee on Monday to add two new stations for the high-speed rail line from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem: one in the downtown area and the other near First Station.
The Transportation Ministry published sketches of the new stations last month in the days leading up to Jerusalem Day. Initial approvals for the plan were approved last November by the National Committee for Planning and Construction of National Infrastructure.
One station, “Jerusalem Central,” is to be located near the central intersection of King George Street and Jaffa Street and will dovetail with the city’s existing Light Rail line.
The other, “Jerusalem Khan,” is to be in the Khan Theater complex, near the First Station cultural center.
As with the station already in place across from Jerusalem’s central bus station, the Jerusalem Central station will be built around 260 feet (80 meters) below the surface and will be accessible via an elevator and/or three escalators and a staircase.
The new stations represent an extension of the high-speed line that currently ends at the Yitzhak Navon station across from the central bus station at the entrance to the capital.
The plans call for a further extension of the line to reach the former train station in the Malha area, to be completed by 2030.
