New program to revolutionize Israeli roads
Billion-dollar investment set to overhaul Israeli infrastructure with new, expanded roads, intersections, tunnels. 'Less head-on collisions, traffic jams,' program promises
Some NIS 27 billion ($7.5 billion) will be invested over the next five years in the construction of tunnels, intersections, the paving of new roads and the expansion of existing roads, as part of a National Road Company program.
Seventy-five intersections, bridges and tunnels will be constructed as part of the program between 2011 and 2015. About 250 kilometers will be added to existing roads, and 70 km of new roads will be paved.
The investment amount will be added to the NIS 11 billion ($3 billion) allocated to the program earlier this year to revamp roads in the Negev and the Galil regions of Israel.
The new, expanded plan was revealed during a National Roads Company conference, in which hundreds of architects and engineers participated. The program, which is still awaiting approval from the Transportation and Finance Ministries, will raise the speed limit on many three-lane highways to 110 (68 miles) an hour.
The program will focus on adding lanes to major highways and placing safety dividers between the lanes. The highway upgrades are expected to relieve traffic jams and reduce the number of fatal head-on collisions, officials said.
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