HEADLINES
Negev airport 7B plan stalls cabinet vote
Tel Aviv Red Line overrun warns Negev
Disagreement over Ramat David stalls Negev vote

The time is now 8:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In Israeli Economy and Business, the government is pressing ahead with a new Negev international airport at a price tag of NIS 7 billion, a project the government says would serve ten million passengers a year and handle seventy thousand aircraft movements. The site is set for Ziklag in the northern Negev, between Rahat and Netivot, with a cabinet vote scheduled for February 8 postponed less than an hour before the session amid disagreements over whether to include a parallel airport at Ramat David in the Jezreel Valley. The government’s description calls it a national necessity that would effectively eliminate the concept of periphery. But two decades of data suggest the final bill will be far higher.

The record of past major government-funded infrastructure projects does not inspire confidence: none have been completed on time and on budget in the last twenty years. For example, the Tel Aviv Red Line light rail was approved in 2010 at NIS 10.7 billion and opened in August 2023 at NIS 18.71 billion, about 75 percent over budget and roughly a decade late. The State Comptroller noted the original budget allocated just 16 percent for contingencies, underscoring the risk of overruns.

Thank you for tuning in to this Israel Today: Ongoing War Report update.
I'm Noa Levi. Stay safe and informed.
Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description.

SOURCES
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/energy-and-infrastructure/article-886577