Light rail construction to disrupt Tel Aviv traffic till 2021

The Tel Aviv municipality has begun preparing for the “messy phase” of the Tel Aviv light rail Red Line works and is planning to launch a broad PR campaign a month before the works begin, after it becomes clear that they will not be delayed again. The city is currently working to identify residents and business owners who are liable to be harmed by the works. Municipality sources said, “There is no avoiding it. It’s not reasonable to expect that works such as demolishing the Carlebach bridge will happen without a significant adverse effect on traffic.”

The construction of five underground stations in Tel Aviv will commence between August and September: Carlebach, Shaul Hamelech, Allenby, Arlozorov, and Yehudit. The first stage of construction will include the excavation of the areas where the future stations will be built. The works are expected to continue until 2021, and while they are underway, traffic throughout the city will be affected. The project site where worst traffic disruption is expected is the Carlebach station project, during construction of which traffic will be redirected from Begin Road, Carlebach, Hamasger, Lincoln, Hataasiya, Hamelacha, Yitzhak Sadeh, and Rival streets.

Begin Road will be closed to traffic in the Carlebach junction area, the Ma’ariv bridge will be demolished, to be replaced by an underpass. Public transport will be adjusted according to the anticipated new traffic arrangements resulting from the works, and will be redirected to Hamasger and Hahashmonaim streets. Dedicated public transport lanes will be opened on these streets. The direction of traffic will be reversed on Hataasiya and Hamelacha streets. The Allenby station works will cause traffic changes on Yehuda Halevy, Mikve Israel, Bezalel Yaffe, Yavne, Shadal and Ramhal streets.

Tel Aviv Light Rail, derailed. Again!

Plans for Tel Aviv’s Light Rail have been put back on the shelf for another six years, beyond the original target date of 2017. Tel Aviv’s Light Rail system, which first part is called the Red Line, consists of two lines and subway tunnels, and it has now been put back on the shelf for another six years, beyond the original target date of 2017.

In an internal report sent to the Finance Ministry, the Dutch auditor for the project, Aegis predicted the Red Line of the new system would not make its first run before 2023. The Green Line, which was to launch in 2020 is allegedly still "on track."

Contributing to the delays are cost overruns totaling up to NIS 3 billion, delays in the project’s timetable, and ongoing staff relations issues plaguing NTA Metropolitan Mass Transit System Ltd General Manager Itzhak Zuchman. The project, which originally was a “build-operate-transfer” (BOT) system held by a consortium led by Africa-Israel Investments Ltd., was nationalized in December 2010 due to financing problems. But the government-set budget of NIS 10.7 billion has already been surpassed, and currently stands at an estimated NIS 14 billion, according to NTA, the government firm responsible for the system’s infrastructure work.

New financing options to accelerate light rail build-up

A pending compromise between the Tel Aviv Municipality and the government proposes greatly increasing building rights in the city to 700-800% from 400% in exchange for a subway. The increased building rights would generate hundreds of millions in taxes for the government and would offset the huge additional cost in building the light rail's Green Line as a subway.

The increased building rights will not necessary apply to the area along a 2.5-kilometer stretch of the Green Line's route between Carlebach Street and the northern end of Ibn Gvirol Street. The 24-kilometer Green Line will run from Rishon LeZion in the south to the Yarkon River in north Tel Aviv, and may later be extended to Herzliya. The line was originally planned as an above-ground light rail, which Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai opposes. The Tel Aviv Municipality said, "The lot in the Kirya area, along the Red Line, is also relevant to the initiative."

A source involved with the project said that preliminary estimates suggest that the increased building rights will be sufficient to finance the NIS 1.5-2 billion cost of the Green Line. The line could result in the construction of 25,000-30,000 new apartments in the Large Lot in the Transyarkon area of north Tel Aviv. The Tel Aviv Municipality and the Ministry of Finance already agree that the Green Line section between Levinski Street in South Tel Aviv and Carlebach Street would be underground, but they have disagreed for years about the stretch north of Carlebach Street. Officially, the ministry consents only to an above-ground line, and insists that the Tel Aviv Municipality finance the extra cost in full for an underground line. The municipality says that this is not possible.

In addition to the Dan Region Light Rail's Red and Green lines, a Purple Line is in the statutory stages, and four bus rapid transit (BRT) lines are planned. The Tel Aviv Municipality said in response, "The municipality believes that it is very important to build the Green Line, at the same time as the Red Line, as a subway between Levinski Street and the Yarkon River. We believe that maximizing the building rights in the Kirya area can generate the financial sources needed. However, talks are only in the initial stages, and we hope that an agreement can be reached to build the Green Line as quickly as possible."

Source Globes