The Heletz Railway is a 20 km railway in southern Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

 which connects the Railway to Beersheba

Railway 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...

 from a point just south of Kiryat Gat to the Lod–Ashkelon railway near moshav

Moshav

Moshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...

 Mavki'im

Mavki'im

Mavki'im is a moshav in southern Israel. Located near Ashkelon, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 320....

. The track passes close to moshav Heletz

Heletz

Heletz is a moshav in southern Israel. Located between Ashkelon, Kiryat Gat and Sderot, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof Ashkelon Regional Council...

, from which it derives its name.

History

The railway was constructed by Israel Railways

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...

 in the early 1980s, to provide a shortcut for freight trains from southern Israel headed for the Port of Ashdod

Port of Ashdod

The Port of Ashdod is one of Israel's two main cargo ports. The port is located in Ashdod, about 40 kilometers south of Tel Aviv, adjoining the mouth of the Lachish River. Its establishment doubled the country's port capacity. It is a major point of entry for both cargo and tourists in and out of...

. Previously, such trains had to be routed through the Lod Railway Station

Lod Railway Station

Lod Railway Station is an Israel Railways station in Lod, Israel, served by most railway lines of Israel Railways. The station is located in the HaRakevet district of south Lod. In December 2006, Lod Station served a daily average of 7,786 passengers....

 in central Israel. The railway was once used for some limited passenger service, though today it is used by passenger trains only on an emergency basis—in instances when the Lod – Kiryat Gat section of the Railway to Beersheba is blocked.

Development

The Ashkelon–Beersheba railway, currently under construction to the south of the Heletz railway, will provide an alternate rail connection between the Railway to Beersheba and the Lod-Ashkelon railway. Israel Railways has proposed a plan to extend the Heletz railway from Kiryat Gat to Tarqumiyah

Tarqumiyah

Tarqumiyah is a Palestinian town located twelve kilometers northwest of Hebron.The town is in the Hebron Governorate Southern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of over 14,357 in 2007....

 in the future as a means of providing a rail connection between the Gaza Strip

Gaza Strip

thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...

 and the southern West Bank

West Bank

The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...

.