Highway 44 (Israel)

From the AARoads Wiki: Read about the road before you go
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Highway 44

כביש 44 (Hebrew)
Route information
Length41 km (25 mi)
Major junctions
Northwest endHolon Interchange
Major intersections
  • HaShiv'a Interchange
  • Beit Dagan Junction Junction
  • Ramla North Junction
  • Ma'asiyahu Junction Junction
  • Ramlod Interchange
  • Nesharim Interchange
  • Nahshon Junction
Southeast endShimshon Junction
Location
CountryIsrael
Major citiesTel Aviv-Yafo, Holon, Rishon LeZion, Ramla, Lod, to Beit Shemesh
Highway system
Highway 42 Highway 45
Bus stops on Highway 44 (Israel) near Holon Interchange. Designed by Moti Bodek

Highway 44 is an arterial road in central Israel. It connects Tel Aviv-Yafo and Holon to Ramla, Lod and the Shefela. It is numbered as a north–south road and follows a north-west to south-east path.

Route description

Highway 44 begins in the coastal plain at the south-eastern edge of Tel Aviv at Holon Interchange with the Ayalon Highway. It travels south-easterly, passing Mikve Yisrael, Holon's industrial zones, and Azor. It then crosses Highway 4 at HaShiv'a Interchange. This section is named HaShiv'a Road in memory of seven guards killed in 1948. Southeast of HaShiv'a Interchange the road crosses Beit Dagan Junction with Route 412, which connects it with Rishon Letzion and Yehud. The road then passes the Volkani Institute, the Tzrifin Military base, Assaf HaRofeh Medical Center and various industrial parks.

As Highway 44 enters the municipality of Ramla, it is briefly named Herzl Boulevard. Historically, the road continued straight through beautiful downtown Ramla. Since the mid-1990s, the road makes a left turn at Ramla North Junction onto HaHashmoa'im Street, bypassing Ramla along its northern edge. Just east of Ramla, the road passes Ramlod Interchange with Highway 40 and rejoins the original route, continuing past the Nesher Industrial Zone and the Nesher Cement Factory, one of the most impressive landmarks in the area.

Historically, just past Nesher, the road connected at Gezer Junction with Route 424 to the Gezer Regional Council. That junction was moved 1 km. further south to accommodate Nesharim Interchange with Highway 6 and Route 431. The road then continues past several agricultural communities until Nachshon Junction. Until this point, the road has travelled with almost no changes in elevation, averaging 75 meters above sea level. After Nachshon Junction, it begins a slow ascent into the foothills of the Judean Mountains, passing several more agricultural communities and national forests. The road finally ends at Shimshon Junction with Highway 38.

History

For centuries prior, while Jaffa and its seaport served as the gateway into Palestine, the section of Highway 44 between Jaffa and Ramla formed part of the historic highway connecting Jaffa to Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The historic highway then followed modern highway 424 to Latrun, and continued to Jerusalem along the route of modern Highway 1.

After the establishment of the State, this road operated for many years as one of the main routes connecting the coastal plain with Jerusalem via Highway 38 and Sha'ar HaGai (Bab al-Wad). In 1948, the Latrun section of the old road to Jerusalem (Highway 1) was taken over by Jordan. Traffic between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem was diverted to a new route called "Kvish HaGvura" (Road of Valor)[1] of which Highway 44 served as the connection between Nachshon Junction and Shimshon Junction with Highway 38 leading to Sha'ar HaGai.

Future

The Israel Ministry of Transport has announced a grade separation of Highway 44 with the Lod-Na'an Railway line at HaHashmonain Street adjacent to Ramla North Junction. The road will be raised to pass over the rail line. The estimated completion date is 2014 and the cost will be 160M Shekels.[2]

Junctions and Interchanges

Km Name Type Meaning Location Intersecting routes
0 מחלף חולון
(Holon Interchange)
ILramzor2.svg
ILjunction-holon.png
named after biblical location
(little) sand
Tel Aviv-Yafo,
Holon
from Derech Ben-Zvi,
ISR-FW-20.svg Highway 20
Levi Eshkol Blvd
Derech HaShiv'a
2.4 ILramzor2.svg Holon,
Azor
HaMakhtesh St.
2.9 צומת אזור
(Azor Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Azor Herzl St.
3.3 ILramzor2.svg Holon HaMelakha St.
3.7 ILramzor2.svg Azor Kaplan St.
4.8 מחלף השבעה
(HaShiv'a Interchange)
ILramzor2.svg
ILjunction-hashiva.png
The Seven Holon,
Azor,
Mishmar HaShiv'a
ISR-HW4.png Highway 4
5.4 westbound only Fareskilt 20.PNG Mishmar HaShiv'a Tzvi Zeira St.
6.1 צומת בית דגן
(Beit Dagan Junction)
ILramzor2.svg named after ancient location
House of Dagon
Rishon LeZion
Beit Dagan
ISR-HW-412.svg Route 412
9 צומת כפר חב"ד
(Kfar Chabad Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Chabad Village Kfar Habad ISR-HW-4402.svg Road 4402
9.7 צומת ראשון מזרח
(Rishon Mizrah Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Rishon East Rishon LeZion Derech Chaim Herzog
10.4 צומת צריפין
(Tzrifin Junction)
ILramzor2.svg named after former location Tzrifin Military Base,
Assaf HaRofeh
Medical Center
,
Camp Yadin
entrance roads
11.1 ILramzor2.svg Tzrifin
Industrial Park,
Sochnut Warehouses
local road
11.7 ILramzor2.svg New Wholesale Market,
Kiryat Shlomo
Industrial Park,
Nir Tzvi
Industrial Park
local roads
12.7 צומת ניר צבי
(Nir Tzvi Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Zvi's Meadow Be'er Ya'akov,
Nir Tzvi
Arava St.,
ISR-HW-4313.svg Road 4313
14.1 Railway Crossing
2 tracks
Fareskilt 24.PNG Ramla
Herzl Boulevard
14.5 צומת רמלה צפון
(Ramla North Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Ramla North Ramla Herzl Blvd.
HaHashmona'im Street
14.9 Railway Crossing
2 tracks
Fareskilt 24.PNG Ramla
15 ILramzor2.svg Ramla
Lod
HaHasmal St.
to Yoseftal St.
15.4 north-westbound only Fareskilt 20.PNG Ramla
Lod
Shmuel Tamir St.
16.4 צומת מעשיהו
(Ma'asiyahu Junction)
also called
צומת תעבורה
(Ta'avura Junction)
ILramzor2.svg name for nearby Prison

Transport
Ramla
Lod
ISR-HW434.png Route 434
(Tel-Hai St.)
17.2 מחלף רמלוד
(Ramlod Interchange)
ILramzor2.svg
ILjunction-ramlod.png
combination of
Ramla and Lod
Ramla
Lod
ISR-HW-40.svg Highway 40
17.8 south-eastbound only Fareskilt 20.PNG Ramla (east),
al Mahta
Herzl Blvd.
18.1 ILramzor2.svg Nesher
Industrial Zone
Har Atzmon St.
18.7 צומת נשר
(Nesher Junction)
Eagle,
named after nearby
Nesher Cement Factory & ult.
Rambam, the great Eagle
Nesher
Cement Factory
19 מחלף נשרים
(Nesharim Interchange)
ILramzor2.svg
ILjunction-nesharim.png
Eagles Ramla,
Lod,
Yad Rambam
ISR-FW-6.svg Highway 6
ISR-HW-431.svg Route 431
20 צומת גזר
(Gezer Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Carrot Gezer Regional Council ISR-HW424.png Route 424
20.4 ILramzor2.svg exit from
ISR-FW-6.svg Highway 6
northbound
22.8 צומת בית אוזיאל
(Beit Uziel Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG House of Uziel Beit Uziel local road
24.3 צומת פתחיה
(Petahya Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG Entrance of God Petahya,
Pedaya
ISR-HW-4243.svg Road 4243
27.4 צומת כרמי יוסף
(Karmei Yosef Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG Yosef's Vineyards Karmei Yosef ISR-HW-4243.svg Road 4243
30.4 צומת נחשון
(Nahshon Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Pioneer (literary Hebrew)
named after
Operation Nachshon
Mishmar David,
Tal Shahar,
Bekoa
ISR-HW-3.svg Highway 3
Derech HaGvura
32 צומת צלפון
(Tzelafon Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG named after ancient location
possibly after Zelelponith
ult. Shade come upon me
Tzelafon
Gizo
HaZayit St.
33.2 צומת הראל
(Har'el Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG named after Harel Brigade
ult. Mountain of God
Har'el ISR-HW-4243.svg Road 4243
34.4 צומת כפר אוריה
(Kfar Uria Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG ult. remembrance of
biblical story of
Samson's encounter with
the lion at Timnah
Kfar Uria ISR-HW-4243.svg Road 4243
36.9 צומת תרום
(Tarum Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG Exalted Tarum ISR-HW-4243.svg Road 4243
37.1 צומת תעוז
(Ta'oz Junction)
Fareskilt 20.PNG Stronghold Ta'oz ISR-HW-4243.svg Road 4243
41.1 צומת שמשון
(Shimshon Junction)
ILramzor2.svg Named after
biblical character
Samson
Eshtaol,
Beit Shemesh
ISR-HW-38.svg Highway 38

References

  1. ^ "Inauguration ceremony of Kvish HaGevurah". The Meitar Collection. Retrieved 2011-12-07. switch to Hebrew for identification as 44
  2. ^ "Grade Separation - North entrance to Ramla". Ministry of Transport, National Infrastructure & Road Safety. Retrieved 2012-12-16.(in Hebrew)

See also