Jerusalem–Malha railway station

Jerusalem–Malha railway station (Hebrew: תחנת הרכבת ירושלים – מלחה, Tahanat HaRakevet Yerushalayim–Malha; Arabic: محطة أورشليم – المالحة) was one of two Israel Railways termini in Jerusalem, the other being Jerusalem–Yitzhak Navon railway station. The station is located in the southern neighborhood of Malha, across from the Jerusalem Shopping Mall, Pais Arena and Teddy Stadium.

Jerusalem–Malha ירושלים – מלחה
Israel Railways
General information
Location	Jerusalem, Israel
Coordinates	31°44.885′N 35°11.252′E
Line(s)	Jaffa–Jerusalem railway
Platforms	2
Tracks	4
Construction
Platform levels	3
Accessible	Yes
History
Opened	9 April 2005; 19 years ago (2005-04-09)
Closed	March 2020
Passengers
2019	115,118[1]
Rank	66 out of 68

v t e Tel Aviv – Jerusalem line
Legend
to Haifa, Nahariya, Beit She'an & Karmiel to Bnei Brak & Herzliya Tel Aviv–Savidor Central Tel Aviv–HaShalom to Tel Aviv–Beit Hadar & Jaffa Tel Aviv–HaHagana to Rishon LeZion–Dayan, Ashkelon, & Be'er Sheva to Tel Aviv–South to Ben Gurion Airport, Modi'in, & Jerusalem Kfar Chabad Lod–Ganei Aviv to Rosh HaAyin & Herzliya Lod to HaRishonim, Rehovot, Ashkelon, & Be'er Sheva Ramla to Kiryat Gat & Be'er Sheva Beit Shemesh Jerusalem–Biblical Zoo Jerusalem–Malha Jerusalem–Khan to Jerusalem–Central & Jerusalem–Navon
Israel Rail Lines Map

As it is much less centrally located than Navon station, and the historic Jaffa–Jerusalem railway provides a much slower journey to the Tel Aviv area than the modern Tel Aviv–Jerusalem railway, ridership is very low. 115,118 passengers boarded or disembarked at the station in 2019, ahead of only the adjacent Biblical Zoo railway station and Dimona railway station.

Service to the station has been suspended entirely since March 2020 due to poor usage combined with the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is unclear if or when it will resume.^[2]

History

Jerusalem–Malha is the current terminus of the Jaffa–Jerusalem railway. The other Jerusalem station on this line is the Biblical Zoo station which is served by limited stops. Jerusalem Malha was opened on April 9, 2005, when the historic Jaffa–Jerusalem railway was restored after being out of service for six years. The line underwent a major renovation, including the laying of new tracks. Jerusalem Malha replaced the historic Jerusalem railway station near the Old City as the terminus of the line, which was not restored due to the objections of area residents over train noise. The at grade tracks from Malha to Khan have been turned into a mixed use path, called the Park HaMesila, or Train Track Park.

Since February 5, 2006, intercity bus routes to Gush Etzion and the Hebron area stop at Malha station on their way from the Jerusalem Central Bus Station to their destination via Begin Boulevard.

Future

There are conceptual plans to extend the new Tel Aviv–Jerusalem railway from Jerusalem–Yitzhak Navon to Jerusalem–Malha along an underground route beneath Jerusalem; for that reason, Malha station was built as a thorough station at a surface elevation equal to that of Jerusalem–Navon's underground tracks and platforms. Detailed plans unveiled in November 2021^[3] establish the precise course of the extension, which will also pass via a new underground station in central Jerusalem and another underneath the historic Jerusalem-Khan train station.

• 
  Passengers hall (2013)
• 
  View from outside
• 
  Malha railway station in snow

References

1. "2019 Freedom of Information Law Annual Report" (PDF). Israel Railways.
2. Keinan, Lior (27 June 2020). "רגב נגד האוצר: מסרבת לבטל את הקו לדימונה - חרף מיעוט נוסעים". Channel 13 News. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
3. "מנהל התכנון".

External links

• Niv-Schwartz architectural plan
• Station under construction