Jerusalem Light Rail Line L3 Extends to Damascus Gate as Tel Aviv Bus Routes Shift
Jerusalem's light rail Line L3 extends to Damascus Gate, boosting downtown frequency and adding five shared stations with Line L1. Concurrently, nighttime infrastructure works in Tel Aviv forced temporary detours across major bus routes.
The Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Transportation, the Jerusalem Municipality, and the Kfir company announced that starting Tuesday, Light Rail Line L3 will extend its route from HaTorim Station in downtown Jerusalem to the Damascus Gate Station. This extension enables direct travel to the city center via Line L3 while simultaneously increasing train frequency along Jaffa Street.
Line L3 will now include five shared stations with Line L1 connecting passengers to key urban hubs, including the Mahane Yehuda Market, the Municipality Building, the Mamilla district, and the entrance to the Old City. Meanwhile, Line L4, which will connect Gilo and southern Jerusalem to the light rail network, is in the final stages of test runs and is expected to open to the public soon.
In a related development, major bus routes in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area underwent temporary detours due to infrastructure works along HaMasger Street and La Guardia Interchange. The nighttime modifications affecting nine core Dan bus routes took effect on Sunday and Monday nights from 23:00 to 05:00.
During the closures, HaMasger Street was blocked in both directions between Yisrael Tal and La Guardia streets, alongside restrictions at the La Guardia junction. Buses were rerouted via alternative thoroughfares including Menachem Begin Road, HaRakevet, and HaHoresh streets, as well as Yigal Alon Street in the Yad Eliyahu neighborhood. Services operated by Metropolin connecting Tel Aviv to Ra'anana and Kfar Saba also operated on alternative routes during these hours.
