Be'er Sheva North Railway Station
Encyclopedia
Be'er Sheva North Railway Station (also known as the University Train Station) is an Israel Railways
station in Beersheba
. It is a stop on the intercity line from Tel Aviv
and Nahariya
, and the terminus of the Beersheba - Dimona
spur.
The station is located on Haharoshet Street and links to the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
by Mexico Bridge, a covered pedestrian walkway. In 2012, another long pedestrian bridge will be built at the station to allow access to the new high-tech business park being constructed north of the station.
The station complex also includes a rail yard
and freight terminal. Just north of the station Israel Railways plans to construct a large rolling stock maintenance depot. Construction on the first phase of this depot will begin in 2012.
mainly served the phosphate and other mineral industries in the Negev
. The first passenger train station at the site opened on March 29, 1956. In 2002, it was decided to move the passenger terminal 350 meters northwards to a new building nearby the university and an additional island platform was built. The new Beersheba North passenger terminal opened in 2005.
Israel Railways
Israel Railways is the principal passenger railway operating company in Israel, and is responsible for all inter-city and suburban rail way passenger and freight traffic in the country. All its lines are standard gauge. The network is centered in Israel's densely populated coastal plain, from...
station in Beersheba
Beersheba
Beersheba is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the seventh-largest city in Israel with a population of 194,300....
. It is a stop on the intercity line from Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
and Nahariya
Nahariya
Nahariya is the northernmost coastal city in Israel, with an estimated population of 51,200.-History:Nahariya was founded by German Jewish immigrants from the Fifth Aliyah in the 1930s...
, and the terminus of the Beersheba - Dimona
Dimona
Dimona is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arava valley in the Southern District of Israel. Its population at the end of 2007 was 33,600.-History:...
spur.
The station is located on Haharoshet Street and links to the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is a university in Beersheba, Israel, established in 1969. Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has a current enrollment of 17,400 students, and is one of Israel's fastest growing universities....
by Mexico Bridge, a covered pedestrian walkway. In 2012, another long pedestrian bridge will be built at the station to allow access to the new high-tech business park being constructed north of the station.
The station complex also includes a rail yard
Rail yard
A rail yard, or railroad yard, is a complex series of railroad tracks for storing, sorting, or loading/unloading, railroad cars and/or locomotives. Railroad yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock stored off the mainline, so that they do not obstruct the flow of traffic....
and freight terminal. Just north of the station Israel Railways plans to construct a large rolling stock maintenance depot. Construction on the first phase of this depot will begin in 2012.
History
After the closure of the old Turkish railway south of the town in 1927, the railway to Be'er ShevaRailway to Beersheba
The Railway to Beersheba is the common name for the railroad which currently stretches from central Israel to the Zin Factories in southern Israel, with spurs to the Be'er Sheva Center Railway Station, Ramat Hovav and the Arad phosphate mines and factories in Tzefa...
mainly served the phosphate and other mineral industries in the Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
. The first passenger train station at the site opened on March 29, 1956. In 2002, it was decided to move the passenger terminal 350 meters northwards to a new building nearby the university and an additional island platform was built. The new Beersheba North passenger terminal opened in 2005.