Subscribe to Print Edition | Thu., November 20, 2008 Cheshvan 22, 5769 | | Israel Time: 03:06 (EST+7)   Back to Homepage web haaretz.com Haaretz Toolbar Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Car Rental Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate GA 2008 Travel Week's End Anglo File

A euphemism for a heavy rail By Esther Zandberg There is no point in razing the Chords Bridge at the entrance to Jerusalem as mayor-elect Nir Barkat announced last week. It does not matter if the bridge is nice or not, unique to the city or just another assembly line product created by architect Santiago Calatrava. If it is already there and hundreds of millions have already been invested in it, and the renowned architect was already commissioned, then let it remain there at the entrance to the city as a symbol, as a sculpture, as a venue for challenge sports, or as a monument to folly. When it comes to the light rail, however, there is every reason in the world to halt it. Barkat promised to reassess the feasibility of the project and perhaps he, too, will reach the conclusion that it was a mistaken effort and will be able to persuade the relevant parties that there is still a way out. Barkat's statements were not just hasty gut reactions, as some did indeed claim, even if they were far-reaching and made headlines or were linked to a delusional political worldview. Opposition to the light rail was part of Barkat's election platform and he was quoted during the campaign saying that the rail "portends disaster" for Jerusalem and does not justify itself economically. He explained that it would not reach the university campuses or the Old City and the ultra-Orthodox residents of the city would not use it because it would not be separated for men and women. Instead of completing the light rail, he proposed turning the rail lines into lanes for buses "which are much cheaper and more flexible." His remarks attest to straight intelligence and touch on the carefully explained reasoning of experts and professionals in the field. Advertisement A light rail is basically a whitewashed and misleading name for a heavy and convoluted means of transportation that is not flexible and restricted to fixed routes and a certain technology. As architect Oren Tacher, an international expert in transportation planning said, it is an anachronistic solution that most cities around the world no longer use and the main beneficiaries of it are the manufacturers of light rail cars who promote the use of them. One way or another, it is questionable whether this is the appropriate solution for Jerusalem, its urban infrastructure, topographical and demographic makeup and its economic and geopolitical situation. The idea of plopping it into the middle of the city and running it along Jaffa Road appears to be particular destructive. Jaffa Road is a traditional commercial, urban road with small shops along its length whose business is based upon the random passage of people on the road and not on an outing by train that is planned in advance. Many cities around the world would give a lot to have such an Oriental and authentic road that has evolved over the years with all its beauty and ugliness. But in Jerusalem it seems that they are just waiting for it to expire and badmouth it, noting how passe it is, perhaps to prepare the groundwork - the hearts and minds of residents - for its sacrifice for the sake of real estate ventures hovering in the background. Jaffa Road needs to be taken care of, but with careful, pinpoint treatment and not with rail cars running along it every three or four minutes. The idea to build the light rail in Jerusalem surfaced over ten years ago. Since then, nothing has gotten off the ground except the Chords Bridge which chuckles overhead at the endless digging and at the incompetence. The series of problems is perhaps coincidental, but after the fact it is enough to indicate that something, to begin with, was misguided in its conception. Several experts, who should have been listened to in real time, today have the complete right to say we told you so. Architect Hillel Schocken, one of the founders of the Merhav Association for Urban Renewal, has argued for some time that there is no need to invest in the expensive infrastructure for a rail and in city centers it is advisable to use buses, even electric buses. A similar idea was also suggested at the time by the former Tel Aviv municipal engineer, architect Israel Goodowitz. Justifying mass transit Prof. Ilan Solomon, a geographer at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, is hesitant about building light rail systems in city centers and he reiterates his argument that it is not necessarily the best solution for mass transportation. He says buses are a more flexible, cheaper and also faster option, provided that the use of private cars is restricted at the same time. Buses are indeed an option that was completely forgotten in the reach to build the light rail. This does not refer to the mass capacity system using the BRT method that is common in large cities in developing countries and that was also planned for Haifa, but for regular buses, which have a poor public image, not necessarily for justifiable reasons. Israel is a country with the population of a mid-sized city, as Schocken said on many occasions. Its cities do not have enough people and enough travel distances to justify "mass transit." So it would have been enough to first properly address the existing public transportation network before digging up streets and pouring funds into it. The existing bus system is far from being perfect, but it is better than it seems to those who do not even take the buses. Moreover, there is no perfect transit system currently existing. It would have been fitting if upgrading and streamlining the transportation system and making it more user friendly and environmentally friendly had been a key issue in the recent elections in major cities. But this challenge was never taken on. Most passengers on public transportation today are "trapped" users who have no other option. According to Tacher, improving the interface between the various methods of transportation and the passengers, coordinating intercity rail lines with intra-city bus schedules, the use of magnetic cards on the buses instead of the archaic payment method currently in use, and upgrading the transportation facilities would attract more pampered passengers and could spark a turnaround. A transportation terminal like the one at the Tel Aviv Central train station, for example, says Tacher, "should be efficient and easy to orient oneself in, air conditioned, nicely designed and inviting, and not the chaotic and ugly place that it is currently, and that is just for starters." Bookmark to del.icio.us   The King is dead Archeologists find new evidence for King Herod's tomb site. Al-Hasbara Israel launches Arabic YouTube channel to bypass Arab media.

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