Transport in Israel

Transportation in Israel is well developed, and is continuously being upgraded to meet the demands of population growth, political factors, the Israel Defense Forces, tourism and increased traffic.

Highways

Israel has an advanced road network spanning over 17,446 km of roads, of which 144 km are expressways. The network spans the whole country.

Bus services

Israel has a well developed bus route system, and buses are the country's main form of public transport. The Egged Bus Cooperative, Israel's largest bus company, is the second largest in the world, and operates routes throughout the country.

Each major city or region has its own local bus company, the largest being the Dan Bus Company, operating routes in Gush Dan. Kavim is the next largest.

, other than standalone bus stops, come in two types: terminals ("masof", pl. "mesofim") and central terminals ("tahana merkazit"). Each terminal serves a number of routes, usually over a dozen, while a central terminal may serve over a hundred bus routes. The largest central bus terminal in the country is the Tel Aviv Central Bus Station which is also the largest bus terminal in the world.

Israel also has a share taxi service (Hebrew - "Sherut"), run by several private companies, depending on location, in addition to regular taxicab services.

Pipelines

Israel has 193 km of gas pipelines, 442 km of oil pipelines, and 261 km of pipelines for refined products.

Also see Trans-Israel pipeline.

Ports and harbors

Mediterranean Sea

*Ashdod (Ashdod Port)
*Ashkelon
*Hadera
*Haifa (Haifa Port)
*Herzliya
*Tel Aviv-Yafo

Red Sea

On the Gulf of Aqaba:
*Eilat (Eilat Port)

Merchant marine

*Total: 18 ships (with a volume of GRT|1,000|first=yes or over) totaling GRT|716,382/DWT|845,053|metric|first=yes
*Ships by type: Cargo ship 1, Chemical Tanker 1, Container ship 16 (2006)Note: There are many ships owned and operated by Israeli companies but not counted in this list as they are operated under foreign flags of convenience. For example, Israel's Zim Navigation is not only the largest cargo shipping company in Israel but also one of the largest such companies worldwide.

Air transport

As of 2006, there were 53 airports in Israel, the largest, and most well known being Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) located near Tel Aviv which is the destination of most international flights to Israel. Israel's largest airline is El Al Israel Airlines which was previously government owned but was recently privatised. Flights from Israel travel to North America, Europe, the Far East, and neighboring countries in the Middle East. Domestic flights are quite common in Israel, especially between Tel Aviv and Haifa, and the southern city of Eilat, international flights to which travel to Ovda International Airport nearby. In 2007, for the first time, passenger numbers on international flights at TLV had surpassed the 10 million mark. Boeing estimates that 60-80 new aircraft will be purchased by Israeli airlines over the next 20 years. [ [http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2008/02/11/221434/israel-special-flag-carrier-el-al-thrives-despite-high-fuel-costs-and-competition.html Israel special - Flag carrier El Al thrives despite high fuel costs and competition ] ]

According to the Israel Civil Aviation Authority, as of 31 January, 2008, Israel's civil aircraft fleet consisted of 53 aircraft; 47 passenger planes, 5 freighters and one convertible. 41 of these were Boeing jets, 2 Airbus, and 10 turbo-prop produced by ATR and Dash. [ [http://www.port2port.com/Index.asp?CategoryID=44&ArticleID=1691 PORT2PORT - Israel's Trade Portal ] ]

Airports with paved runways

*Total:30
**over 3,047 m:2
**2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
**1,524 to 2,437 m: 8
**914 to 1,523 m: 10
**under 914 m: 6 (2006)

Airports with unpaved runways

*Total:23
**2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
**1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
**914 to 1,523 m: 2
**under 914 m: 20 (2006)

Heliports

*3 (2006)

Airlines

*El Al Israel Airlines
**Sun d'Or International Airlines
*Arkia Israel Airlines
*Israir Airlines

Railways

*Total:899 km
*standard gauge: 899 km 1.435-m gauge (2005)

See related article about Israel Railways.

Railway links with adjacent countries

*Lebanon - defunct
*Syria - defunct
*Jordan - proposed
*Egypt - defunct

Light rail/Subway

Two light rail systems are in advanced planning stages or under construction in Israel - one in Tel Aviv and one in Jerusalem.

A subway also exists in Haifa, called Carmelit. It is one of the shortest subway lines in the world.

References

External links

* [http://www.mot.gov.il/wps/portal/!ut/p/.cmd/cs/.ce/7_0_A/.s/7_0_64T/_s.7_0_A/7_0_64T Ministry of Transport]
* [http://www.otobusim.co.il General bus route information website] , encompassing numerous companies he icon