Tel Aviv Metro Project Advances With Automated Trains and Potential Weekend Operation

The Tel Aviv metropolitan area is moving forward with its largest infrastructure project, the Dan Metro, as the company NTA announced the early qualification process for companies bidding on the trains, systems, and operations contracts. This follows a previous phase focused on tunneling and underground stations, which attracted 20 groups comprising 33 infrastructure companies from Israel and abroad, bidding on contracts worth approximately 65 billion shekels.

The project is now entering a new stage, shifting from infrastructure construction (Infra 1) to systems operation (Infra 2). NTA plans two major tenders: one for the M1 line running from the Sharon region to Rehovot, and another combining the M2 line (Holon to Petah Tikva) and the M3 circular line (Herzliya to Ben Gurion Airport). To avoid past issues with incompatible trains and operational systems, NTA will require a single consortium to provide trains, signaling and control systems, electrical and energy systems, underground station systems, and finishing works. These consortia must include both Israeli and foreign companies, with a mandatory Israeli cybersecurity firm due to the fully automated, driverless trains.

The automated trains will run at high frequency, with a train every 90 seconds during peak hours, eliminating the need to recruit around 1,000 drivers and reducing annual operating costs by about 150 million shekels. The system is technically capable of operating on weekends, which could reduce Sabbath disturbances, although security and operational staff will still be required on Fridays and Saturdays. However, the decision on weekend operation rests with political authorities.

The Dan Metro network will feature three lines totaling about 150 kilometers, 109 underground stations, and connections across 24 municipalities in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, from Rehovot to Kfar Saba. It is expected to handle over 600 million rides annually, and combined with the light rail network, more than 800 million rides per year. The project's cost is estimated at approximately 175 billion shekels. It aims to alleviate worsening traffic congestion, enable residents to live farther from expensive job centers, and still reach workplaces quickly.

NTA has not officially excluded Chinese companies from participation. Infrastructure tenders are expected to be published by the end of the year, with train and systems tenders following in about a year. Despite previous delays and warnings from the State Comptroller, NTA states the project is on schedule for phased commercial operation between 2037 and 2045.