Israel Awards Major Contract for High-Speed Rail Between Tel Aviv and Haifa

The company "Danya Cebus" has won a multi-million shekel tender to construct the first phase of a high-speed coastal railway line connecting Haifa and Tel Aviv. This initial phase will focus on the segment between Haifa and the Dor settlement, near Zichron Yaakov, with an estimated completion date of 2035. The project aims to enable trains to travel at speeds of up to 250 kilometers per hour, significantly reducing travel time between Israel's major northern and central cities.

The overall 68-kilometer project, planned for 18-25 years, involves laying two additional tracks for high-speed trains alongside existing suburban lines. It also includes constructing tunnels between the Hof HaCarmel and Mifratz Haifa stations, railway bridges, noise barriers, service access roads, drainage systems, and infrastructure for electrification and signaling. Existing stations will be modernized, and new ones built, including a station near Kibbutz Shefaim, north of Tel Aviv. The route between Binyamina and Hadera will be significantly altered to maintain express train speeds, minimizing disruption to nearby residents.

The primary goal is to cut the Tel Aviv to Haifa journey to approximately 30 minutes, compared to the current hour-long trip with multiple stops. The line's capacity will also increase, potentially carrying up to 30,000 passengers per hour on the Haifa section during peak times. Despite the project's long-term nature, construction on the first phase is now commencing materially.

This coastal railway expansion has faced considerable delays since work began in 2012, attributed to planning issues, route disputes, and lengthy objection processes. In 2023, final plan approval was postponed due to seven appeals. The State Comptroller has previously noted the project's unusually long implementation period. Future construction phases, covering the segments from Zichron Yaakov to Netanya and Netanya to Tel Aviv, are expected to proceed as planning is finalized. Currently, the Tel Aviv-Haifa train journey takes about an hour and costs 30.5 shekels one-way.