The new train station being built opposite the central bus station and the light rail in Jerusalem is rapidly advancing and includes the latest construction technology and international security measures. It will be able to hand a stream of 4,000 passengers at any time.
The underground station contains many tunnels and shafts and four platforms of 300 meters each. It will be connected to the ground level station through three speed elevators which can each hold 35 passengers. The station will be constructed of glass and forty 13-meter tall steel pillars, and includes a huge skylight diameter of 21 meters.
The underground level of the train has already been completed. Israeli Railways are now finishing works including laying the long escalators that bring the passengers underground.
The Jerusalem – Tel Aviv train project includes laying a 56 kilometer double track which will pass by the Ben Gurion airport and Modi’in and will reach the entrance to Jerusalem near the Jerusalem Convention Hall. It will reduce the traveling time between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to 28 minutes and will travel 160 kilometers an hour. The estimated final cost will be about 7 billion shekels.
During its first year of operation, it will operate 4 trains per hour in every direction. It’s inauguration is planned for Passover 2018.
The underground station is also being planned as an atomic shelter during emergencies. President Rivlin’s request that it be named for former President Navon was approved.
The new Binyenei Ha’uma station will be built to a depth of more than 80 meters below ground level. It could take as long as 15 minutes to enter the building, pass through security and descend multiple elevators or escalators before boarding the train. The inclined train must come from a station that far below ground level in Jerusalem to make up for the altitude difference between the mountainous capital and coastal Tel Aviv.