A Sneak Peek at the Future of Jerusalem Mass Transit

November 28, 2008 - 12:11 PM by Brian Blum · Leave a Comment
Filed under: General, Israeliness, Politics 
Jerusalem Light Rail
Stepping into one of the sleek and shiny new light rail vehicles set to zip through Jerusalem in the next year and a half, it’s hard to imagine the controversy the system’s roll out has engendered.

CityPass, the international corporation that is building and operating the Jerusalem light rail system, recently opened the doors to its hi-tech transit depot and we joined the tour. We learned more than we wanted to know about the facility’s electricity system and the minutiae of how the maintenance staff cleans dusty wheels.

The highlight for us, though, was getting a chance to wander through the train cars themselves. Despite seats still wrapped in plastic, the enormous vehicles – five times the size of a normal bus – were immensely impressive and a stark contrast with the desert landscape around them (the depot is located just west of the northern Jerusalem satellite community of Pisgat Ze’ev).

Each car consists of five articulated sections and can seat 64 (with a total capacity of 250). There are LCD screens to announce stops and magnetic card readers throughout. 24 cars out of a total of 46 have already been delivered so far.

The Jerusalem light rail has a few features not found in other locations, like France and Spain, where CityPass is operating. The vehicles have to contend with Jerusalem’s notorious hilly terrain. And all the windows have been reinforced to be resistant to stones and Molotov cocktails. A controversial security decision has meant that the light rail travels through the Arab neighborhood of Shuafat…but makes no stops.

Nevertheless, visiting the depot and seeing the cars all in one place gives one the feeling of being in a sci-fi flick: could these state-of-the-art contraptions ever roll through the historic but out of fashion center that represents Israel’s capital?

But that’s just the point.

Jerusalem used to have a more vibrant downtown. But in recent years, many of its more upscale shops have relocated to the Malcha Mall and tourists now flock to the Emek Refaim area. Much of the town center has been reduced to a sad medley of hole-in-the-wall shops selling cheap shmatas and rowdy teenagers who haunt the night hours.

That’s why I’m so enthusiastic about the light rail. Upon its completion, Jaffa Road will turn into a pedestrian-only walkway with the new fangled trolleys running down its center.

Freed from the narrow sidewalks and never-ending traffic, the street will experience a resurgence. Already you can see a row of new cafes in the space of a few blocks, flanked by my favorite The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (the only branch in Jerusalem). A European-style walker-friendly promenade is just the ticket for revitalizing Jerusalem’s core.

Getting there may not be so easy.

Jaffa Road is in the process of being dug up. Large swaths are currently blocked off entirely. Buses have been diverted to adjacent Nevi’im Street which is much too congested to handle the flow. Construction has been painfully slow, leading mayor-elect Nir Barkat to call for the entire project to be stopped and be replaced by high-speed buses.

I’ve already lived through this once. When I was growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, the City’s main artery, Market Street, was dug up for nearly a decade during the building of the BART subway. Businesses folded and Market Street was off-limits for private cars and buses alike.

Eventually, construction was completed and the street now boasts a range of trendy shopping and entertainment facilities. The subway brings in visitors from all over the Bay Area, conveniently and quickly. No one discounts BART’s effectiveness today.

The same will undoubtedly be true for Jerusalem.

A project as grand and complex as Jerusalem’s light rail system has never been attempted before in Israel (the high speed train between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv may eventually top it, if it doesn’t get derailed for the umpteenth time). After a peek at the vehicles that will, hopefully no later than 2010, rattle through town, I remain an enthusiastic supporter.

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Upgrades to transport resisted

July 15, 2008 - 10:05 PM by Harry · 3 Comments
Filed under: Business, Politics 

Transport now!Borat’s infamous anthem “Throw the Jew Down the Well” has two verses. The first begins with the couplet “In my country there is problem / And that problem is transport.” The second opens with “In my country there is problem / And that problem is the Jew.” Yes, Jews and transport make for trouble.

Many have argued that the primary reason that Jerusalem’s highly anticipated light rail system keeps delaying its launch is that the Egged bus giant is doing its best to delay development every step of the way, in an attempt to protect its bread and butter.

Say what you will about conspiracy theories like these, but Egged, a collective that’s owned by its employees, happens to maintain the world’s second-largest fleet of coach buses (only Greyhound’s is bigger), so when you talk about old-time Israeli institutions wielding power comparable to that thrown around by American “big business,” Egged is case in point.

A similar process is reportedly going on in Tel Aviv now, where activists and the municipal government are encouraging the local (near-monopoly-hording) Dan bus company to redesign its counter-intuitive, unsound line structures. Dan, of course, is vehemently opposed, but Deputy Mayor Peer Visner (pictured), a Green Party man through and through, says that if they don’t, then maybe the city ought to implement some sort of Dan alternative – an alternative that could only compete with the big boys if it were to offer rides for free.

For Visner, it’s all in the name of making sure that Israel’s metropolis is as friendly, quiet and waste-free as possible. “As soon as there’s public transportation that’s convenient, efficient and affordable, people will start leaving their cars at home,” he explained to the NRG website (translation ours).

As much as Jerusalem’s light rail can seem like it’s nothing more than a pipe dream, Visner’s vision somehow comes off as even more fantastical. With elections looming and several green-themed parties vying for our love (more on this tomorrow), we have little choice but to wonder just how practical his vendetta against Dan might prove to be over time.

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