The series of 'Path to a Home' agreements approved by the Housing Cabinet include great news for residents of Beit Shemesh and the Haredi public: In exchange for marketing 10,000 housing units in Beit Shemesh, the state will release an additional NIS 430 million budget for upgrading and expanding the southern section of Highway 38.
The actual expansion work has recently begun on the northern and central sections - between the Sha'ar Hagai Interchange and the Yeshai Intersection. Upgrading and expanding the southern section will complete a wide road to the Ela Intersection, which includes a central entrance interchange to Ramat Beit Shemesh.
The government ministries of Transportation, Finance, Construction and Housing, and the Israel Land Authority signed a budget agreement this week totaling approximately NIS 4 billion, which will be applied between 2014-2020 to finance approximately 45 transportation projects related to housing, while advancing the implementation of projects and adapting them to the expected schedule for the construction of housing units.
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The agreement on the matter was approved by the Housing Cabinet, and the central route to Beit Shemesh - Route 38 is a prominent project that occupies approximately 10% of the total budget allocated for route agreements for housing.
Behind the scenes of the inclusion of Beit Shemesh in this project were persuasive efforts by the chairman of the local planning and building committee in Beit Shemesh, Moshe Montag, who held meetings on the subject with senior officials from the Ministry of Housing, and with special assistance from Mayor Moshe Aboutbul.
Montag's activities focused on neutralizing the suspicion that had arisen toward the city of Beit Shemesh, due to the media's treatment of the city and the events of the election campaign.
Today, as a result of this activity, government ministries view construction in Beit Shemesh as a national goal, with the understanding that this is a city that builds for everyone and not just for a certain sector. These understandings have enabled the advancement of plans to build 15,000 housing units in Ramat Beit Shemesh D and Ramat Beit Shemesh E, the marketing of which will begin within a few months.
As a result, the government ministries agreed to approve the budget to complete the upgrade of Highway 38 in the southern section as well, as part of the spatial infrastructure deployment to absorb tens of thousands of new residents in the city. If Beit Shemesh meets the marketing target set for it, and it is likely that it will, the southern section will join the northern and central sections, which have already been budgeted for and for which construction contractors have already been selected, and are currently facing the start of actual upgrade and expansion work.
Completing the upgrade in the southern section will also shorten and streamline the journey from Beit Shemesh to the entire southern region, and from Ramat Beit Shemesh to the central region and Jerusalem.
As part of the planning of the southern section, interchanges will also be built at the following intersections: a small interchange at the Yeshai Intersection - the entrance to the center of Beit Shemesh, a central interchange at the entrance to Ramat Beit Shemesh - Nahal Tze'elim. An interchange at the Azka Intersection, and apparently another interchange at the Ela Intersection - where the road ends.
Planning for the road expansion has been underway for the past year by the Epstein Road Planners firm, which was hired for this purpose by the National Roads Company.
