Transportation minister takes high-speed Tel Aviv-Jerusalem train for test
Israel Katz takes short ride on electric train, supposed to enter service in March, though 40 kilometers of route said incomplete

Transportation Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday took part in a test run of the much-anticipated fast train between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem with its newly installed electric engine.
Tuesday’s test was only on a short section of the track, covering just a few kilometers, as a large segment of the track is not ready, according to The Marker business daily.
According to the report, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) of track have not been readied for Israel’s first intercity electric train.
The trial journey with the electric engine reportedly demonstrated that the train is much quieter and more comfortable than the diesel trains which Israelis are accustomed to.
Israel Railways is reportedly considering temporarily running the train with a diesel engine until the work is completed. However, this compromise raises safety issues as the line runs through several long tunnels.
According to Katz, the train is to enter regular service at the end of March, ahead of the Passover holiday.
“This Passover, we will make it possible for multitudes of Jews to travel to Jerusalem,” said Katz earlier this month. Passover in 2018 begins on the evening of March 30.
An October 2017 report by the state comptroller was highly skeptical that the train would be operational by that date, warning that cutting corners to finish the project by April could lessen the quality of the work, compromise safety, and lead to an overall increase in the costs of the project.
Initially, the train will only run from Tel Aviv’s Haganah station. By the end of 2018, it is scheduled to stop at all the stations in Tel Aviv and Herzliya.
The train will begin running once per hour on a single line, gradually increasing to six trains each hour on two tracks between the cities.
For its first three months, travel on the route will be free of charge, The Marker reported. After that, it will be half price, until all the work is completed. The full price of a one-way fare is reportedly to be less than NIS 25 ($7.30).

The Tel Aviv-Jerusalem rail project, which is projected to cost an estimated NIS 7 billion ($1.8 billion) and has been in the works since 2001, will cut travel time down significantly from the 78-minute ride on the old line built during the days of the Ottoman Empire.
When fully operational, the trains will reach speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour), carrying up to 1,000 passengers each.
In the highly critical report last year, the state comptroller said the train would not be operational for at least another year or two.
According to an Israel Railways internal audit report cited by the comptroller, the conversion of the trains and railway lines from diesel to electric — a project which began 20 years ago — will not be finished until December 2018, or possibly December 2019.

The train line has to be converted to run on electricity, primarily because operating diesel in the long tunnels would be dangerous. This requires at least four substations and some 80 kilometers (50 miles) of electric cabling.
At the time, State Comptroller criticized the Railways Authority, saying it had not stuck to the timetable it set for itself, yet kept insisting it would begin operating the line on schedule.
The Times of Israel Community.