NTA Metropolitan Mass Transit System Ltd. today issued the tender for operating the Tel Aviv Metropolitan region light rail Green and Purple Lines, which are currently under construction. The tender for operating the lines after construction is completed is worth billions of shekels.
According to the tender, the concession to operate the lines will be awarded for 10 years. The operator will be responsible for working with the companies building the lines, hiring the work force and a run-in trial period when the lines are completed and will need to receive a permit from the regulator and a business license for the underground stations on the Green Line.
Meanwhile, the timetable for operating the lines has been postponed several times in recent years. The Green Line, which was due to start operations in 2025, was then postponed to 2027, and is now due to begin running in 2028. The line runs 39 kilometers from Rishon Lezion and Holon in the south to Herzliya in the north with four kilometers of underground tracks in Tel Aviv. The Green Line will have 63 stations and the trains are expected to carry 200,000 passengers per day.
The Purple Line was also initially scheduled to start running in 2025 but has been postponed until 2026 and most recently until 2027. The line will run along Tel Aviv's Arlozorov Street via Givatayim and Ramat Gan to Aluf Sadeh and then to Givat Shmuel and Or Yehuda in the east. The Purple Line will be 27 kilometers long, with 46 stations and will carry 200,000 passengers per day.
The tender to operate the Red Line was won by Tevel, with the line set to run in the coming weeks between Petah Tikva and Bat Yam after numerous dealys.
NTA CEO Haim Glick said, "This is another significant step for the promotion of the light rail network in Gush Dan in the crowded Tel Aviv metropolis. Together, the Red, Green and Purple lines are going to change the traffic and travel habits of all who come to central Israel, and in the future with the addition of the three Metro lines, will bring about a real revolution in many and diverse areas of life such as employment, leisure, air pollution and contribution to the economy."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on May 31, 2023.
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