The Ashkelon–Beersheba railway is a railway line linking

Ashkelon Ashkelon or Ashqelon (; Hebrew: , , ; Philistine: ), also known as Ascalon (; Ancient Greek: , ; Arabic: , ), is a coastal city in the Southern District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border wit ...

and

Beersheba Beersheba or Beer Sheva, officially Be'er-Sheva ( he, בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע, ''Bəʾēr Ševaʿ'', ; ar, بئر السبع, Biʾr as-Sabʿ, Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven), is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. ...

operated by Israel Railways. It spans approximately 60 km of

double track A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track. Overview In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most li ...

in the northern

Negev The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its sout ...

region of southern Israel and provides rail service to the cities of

Sderot Sderot ( he, שְׂדֵרוֹת, , lit. ''Boulevards'', ar, سديروت) is a western Negev city and former development town in the Southern District of Israel. In it had a population of . Sderot is located less than a mile from Gaza (the ...

Netivot Netivot ( he, נְתִיבוֹת, "''paths''", ar, نتيڤوت) is a city in the Southern District of Israel located between Beersheba and Gaza. In , it had a population of . History Netivot was founded in 1956 and named after the bible: " ...

and

Ofakim Ofakim ( he, אֳפָקִים ''ʾŎfāqīm'', or אוֹפָקִים ''ʾŌfāqīm'', ''lit.'' "horizons") is a city in the Southern District of Israel, 20 kilometers (12.4 mi) west of Beersheba. It achieved municipal status in 1955. I ...

. The line links Beersheba, Sderot, Netivot, and Ofakim to Ashkelon and Tel Aviv.

Route and construction timeline

The line is composed of three sections: *A reconstruction and double-tracking of a part of the historic Ashkelon– Gaza coastal railway between Ashkelon and Yad Mordechai, parts of which were previously dismantled since the early 1970s. *A brand new railway between Yad Mordechai and Goral junction on the

Railway to Beersheba The Railway to Beersheba ( he, מסילת הרכבת לבאר שבע, ''Mesilat HaRakevet LiV'er Sheva'') is a railroad line that runs from central Israel to the Zin Factories ( Mount Zin) in southern Israel, with a spur to the Be'er Sheva Center R ...

. This section contains the new Sderot, Netivot and Ofakim stations. *An existing section of the Railway to Beersheba between Goral and Beersheba. The connection between the new railway heading from Ofakim to the Railway to Beersheba is achieved using a

flying junction A flying junction or flyover is a railway junction at which one or more diverging or converging tracks in a multiple-track route cross other tracks on the route by bridge to avoid conflict with other train movements. A more technical term is " g ...

at Goral. This section is intended to be triple-tracked in a future follow-up project, with some bridges along the route already having been widened to accommodate three tracks. The line includes three new road bridges, 18 rail bridges, four grade separations and 11 bridge or tunnel passages for farming equipment.

Construction progress

The line was constructed in stages with the Sderot station opening first, followed by the Netivot station. Construction of the railway to Beersheba was completed in August 2015, except for the Ofakim station. Service to Beersheba started on September 17, 2015 after a dedication ceremony by Israeli Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...

. The Ofakim station was opened on December 31, 2015.

Electrification

Works to electrify the line using 25kV 50Hz AC overhead line are expected to begin in 2023.

Services

The railway serves a new intercity line between Beersheba and Tel Aviv through the communities of the northern Negev, as well as stopping in existing railway stations in Ashkelon,

Ashdod Ashdod ( he, ''ʾašdōḏ''; ar, أسدود or إسدود ''ʾisdūd'' or '' ʾasdūd'' ; Philistine: 𐤀𐤔𐤃𐤃 *''ʾašdūd'') is the sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District, it lies on the Mediterran ...

Yavne Yavne ( he, יַבְנֶה) or Yavneh is a city in the Central District of Israel. In many English translations of the Bible, it is known as Jabneh . During Greco-Roman times, it was known as Jamnia ( grc, Ἰαμνία ''Iamníā''; la, Iamnia) ...

, and

Rishon LeZion Rishon LeZion ( he, רִאשׁוֹן לְצִיּוֹן , ''lit.'' First to Zion, Arabic: راشون لتسيون) is a city in Israel, located along the central Israeli coastal plain south of Tel Aviv. It is part of the Gush Dan metropolitan ...

. The railway is also expected to serve freight trains, supplementing the current freight service via the railway to Beersheba and the Heletz railway.

External links

Aerial video of the construction works between Sderot and Goral

References

Standard gauge railways in Israel {{Israel-transport-stub