The Railway to Karmiel is a proposed railway linking Acre (Akko) and Karmiel in northern Israel. According to Israel Railways' plan, a new double track standard gauge railroad would stretch for about 23 km from just south of Akko to Karmiel. It would branch eastwards from the Coastal Railway between the Kiryat Motzkin Railway Station and the Acre Railway Station (at a point nearby where the Coastal Railway passes over the Na'aman River) and would include an approximately 5 km long tunnel (composed of two parallel single-track tunnels) in the mountainous region near the eastern end of the line. Most of the route will be in the vicinity of Highway 85. Two stations are planned, one in Ahihud and one in the entrance to Karmiel. From Karmiel, a conceptual design exists to eventually extend the railway to Korazim (near Safed) and from there to Kiryat Shmona at the very northern tip of Israel.
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The railway was first proposed in the early 2000s but the plans were put on hold in the Sharon government due to financial reasons. An alternative plan to instead create a light rail line from Haifa to Karmiel was rejected.[1] The Knesset's Research and Information Center criticized the relevant authorities for not doing enough research on the advantages and disadvantages of light vs. heavy rail in the projcet.[2] The light rail plan was supported by Ministry of Finance and Haifa's development company Yefe Nof, while the heavy rail plan was supported by Israel Railways and the Karmiel municipality.[2][3] The light rail to Karmiel would have been part of a larger project that would include Nazareth and Acre.[2] The Nazareth section was eventually also rejected in favor of a heavy rail line.[4]
In 2009, a number of northern municipalities turned to the Negev and Galilee Development minister Silvan Shalom in an effort to promote the plan for the railway. They argued that it was necessary for the construction of viable institutions of higher education in the region. On November 26, 2009, Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz gave his seal of approval for the plans,[5] however, this did not immediate translate into financial approval.[1]
Eventually, on February 24, 2010, the Israeli government voted to appropriate funds to construct the line as part of a larger national infrastructure spending package.[2][6] A budget of NIS 2.8 billion (about US $750 million) was approved for the project,[7] not including the cost of electrifying the line, which was approved as part of a separate NIS 2.2 billion appropriation[2] which also includes the cost of rolling stock for the Karmiel and some other new lines.
The railway will include a double track with a length of 23 kilometers (14 mi) per track, from the Coastal Railway to the entrance to Karmiel. The majority of the route will follow the east–west Highway 85. The railway's top traveling speed will be 160 kilometers per hour (99 mph)[6] and it will accommodate two trains per direction per hour.[2] It expected to be the first electrified railway line in Israel (not including light rail).[8]
The railway will include two stations, Ahihud and Karmiel, with the possibility of additional stations adjacent to Jadeidi-Makr and Majd al-Krum.[2] It has been declared a national project under National Infrastructure Plan 12/2.[9] In the future, it will be extended to Kiryat Shmona, the northernmost city in Israel.[2]
Upon the approval of the line, construction was expected to last between 2011 and 2015.[8] The National Roads Company, which is coordinating the project, will publish a total of six design-build tenders for the railway, including four infrastructure tenders and a tender for each of the two stations on the line.[3] The following sections are included in the infrastructure tenders:
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