The Red Line is the first section in operation of the light rail system in Jerusalem, known as the Jerusalem Light Rail. It became fully operational on December 1, 2011. The line is 13.9 kilometers (8.6 mi) long with 23 stops. Extensions to the Red Line are currently under construction to the northern settlement of Neve Yaakov and to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital to the southwest. When completed in 2024, these will extend the line's length to 22.5 km (14.0 mi).[3]
With a total estimated cost for the initial section of the line of 3.8 billion NIS (approx. US $1.1 billion),[4][5] the project was criticized for budget overruns, for its route serving illegal settlements in east Jerusalem and for contributing to air and noise pollution during construction.[6]
Initial extensions to the Red Line were planned to the neighborhoods of Neve Yaakov in Northeast Jerusalem and Ein Karem (near Hadassah Hospital) in the Southwest. Former mayor Uri Lupolianski stated that they would be completed at the same time as the rest of the line. In 2008, French company Egis Rail won an 11.9 million Euro contract to carry out some of the design work. However, in March 2009, CityPass turned down implementing the project.[13] In May 2010, the Jerusalem Municipality announced that the extensions would be built by the state authorities rather than a private company. The extension to Hadassah Hospital from Mount Herzl was particularly challenging and involved a complex path with complicated bridging works. The line's terminal station before the extension, next to Hadassah's inpatient building, was built during the construction of the inpatient building – in order not to disrupt hospital operations later after the new building will be completed.[3] At one point, branches to the Red Line were planned that would create a "campus line" connecting the Mount Scopus and Givat Ram campuses of the Hebrew University,[14] however this function will be accomplished by the future Green Line.