The public transportation system in Haifa is about to expand, with seven new bus lines to be added at a cost of NIS 2.6 billion.
The upgrade will make metro Haifa “the most publicly accessible” city in Israel, according to Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz, who called the plan a “revolution” that would serve as “a model for other cities.”
The transit network is to be based on the current three existing Metrobus lines in the city, and on the single Carmelit subway and rail car line.
Katz said the new lines are to be facilitated by the Transportation Ministry and the Yefe-Nof company – the same company that set up the Metrobus lines – and are projected for 1.2 million trips in and around Haifa daily.
The system expansion is be facilitated via the BOT (build-operate-transfer) method – a way to finance projects in which a private entity receives the tender from the public or private sector to finance, design, build and operate a contracted system or facility. The method enables the contractor to recover the investment, operating and maintenance expenses via the project itself, which typically is a long-term endeavor.
The method is used in California, Florida, Indiana, Texas and Virginia, as well as in some other nations.