Highway 31 (Israel)

Highway 31
Highway 31
כביש 31
	A bridge of Highway 31 over the Railway to Beersheba near the Lehavim–Rahat railway station, December 2020
Route information
Length	60.5 km (37.6 mi)
Existed	1963–present
Major junctions
West end	Lakiya Interchange
East end	Zohar Junction
Location
Country	Israel
Highway system
	Roads in Israel; Highways;

Highway 31 is an inter-city highway in southern Israel. It begins at Lakiya Interchange with Highway 6 at Lakiya. It passes through Hura, Kuseife, Arad, and it terminates at Zohar Junction with Highway 90 south of Neve Zohar just west of the Dead Sea.

History

The initial plan for road construction was formulated in the mid-1950s.^[1]

In July 1961, the construction of the western section of the road between Lahavim and Arad began.^[2]^[3] The start of the work was marked in a ceremony in the presence of Pinchas Sapir.^[4] The groundwork on the road continued until May 1962^[5]^[6] and then the laying of infrastructure^[7] began. In the second half of 1962, the tarring was carried out^[8] and the road was inaugurated in February 1963.^[9] During the inauguration, the road was named after Gershon Dubinbaum, a Palmach member who was killed in the area.^[10] The demolition work on the eastern section of the road, from Arad to the Dead Sea, also began in July 1961, but due to the steep route of the road, they took longer, and required quarrying and blowing up rocks.^[11] This section of the road was inaugurated in June 1964,^[12] after three years of work.^[13]

The road included one lane in each direction, and during 2010-2012, 30 people were killed in traffic accidents.^[14] The section between Arad and Sodom was a dangerous road descending to the Dead Sea region in sharp turns until it was upgraded in 2014. This section is loved by bikers, some of whom have died on it. South of the road is a cluster of several memorials to bikers who were killed on the so-called "Death Road." In 2010, the National Roads Company of Israel began a project to widen the road to two lanes in both lanes in the Shoket - Arad section. The project includes the construction of a wide and protective traffic island between the tracks, as well as the construction of interchanges in place of the existing intersections. Most of the interchanges were opened in 2015. As part of the works, intensive treatment was carried out to develop scenery and landscaping on the roadside, sidewalks were erected, and lighting was installed along the entire section length. In addition, a bicycle path was paved, and safety rails were placed for vehicles and pedestrians.^[15] At the entrance to the city of Arad, a traffic light was placed to regulate traffic between Highway 31 and Shamir and Kan'im streets.

On February 3, 2015, an accident occurred between a truck carrying a tractor and a bus near the Lehavim intersection. 8 residents of Hura and the surrounding area were killed and dozens were injured.

In the past, the road continued west until the HaNasi Junction. Today, the section of the road from HaNasi Junction to Lehavim Junction is marked as Route 310. Highway 6 was paved using the existing route of Highway 31 from Lehavim to Lakiya Interchange, and today, this section is marked as Highway 6 only. The section was opened in 2015. Highway 6 continues south and connects to the upgraded road to Arad at the Shoket Interchange.

Junctions & Interchanges (West to East)

District^[16]	Location^[17]	km	mi	Name	Destinations
Southern	Lakiya	0	0.0	מחלף לקייה (Lakiya Interchange)	Highway 6 Route 358
	Lakiya	2	1.2	צומת לקייה (Lakiya Junction)	Entrance to Lakiya
	Tel Shoket	3.5	2.2	מחלף שוקת (Shoket Interchange)	Highway 6
	Meitar	5	3.1	מחלף מיתר (Meitar Interchange)	Highway 60
	Hura	8	5.0	מחלף חורה (Hura Interchange)	Entrance to Hura
	Hura	10	6.2	מחלף יתיר (Yatir Interchange)	Route 316
	Mulada	13.5	8.4	מחלף מולדה (Mulada Interchange)	Entrance to Mulada
	Nasasra	20	12	מחלפון נבטים (Nevatim Interchange)	Entrance to Nasasra
	Kuseife	22.5	14.0	מחלף כסייפה (Kuseife Interchange)	Road 3112 Entrance to Kuseife
	Tel Arad	28.5	17.7	צומת תל ערד (Tel Arad Junction)	Highway 80
	Arad	32	20	מחלף פארק ערד (Arad Park Interchange)	Entrance to Arad Park
	Arad	37	23	צומת ערד (Arad Junction)	Road 3199
	Hatrurim Formation	54	34	צומת חתרורים (Hatrurim Junction)	Route 258
	Neve Zohar	60.5	37.6	צומת זוהר (Zohar Junction)	Highway 90
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Gallery

Information sign near the junction with Highway 90

Hazardous road

Road 31, nicknamed road of death^[18] had been declared a red road (a road that has more than average number of fatal accidents) by both Or Yarok^[19] and the Israeli police.^[20] The road had an average of 2 fatal accidents per month between 2011 and 2013,^[21] and had a total of 87 dead and 1399 wounded up until 2015.^[22]

References

^ Raphael Bashan [in Hebrew] (20 March 1958). "הטכניון הולך לראש זוהר" (in Hebrew). Maariv.
^ "דרך סדום-אילת תקוצר ב-70 קילומטר" (in Hebrew). Davar. 15 May 1961.
^ "הוחל בסלילת הכביש לערד" (in Hebrew). Davar. 17 July 1961.
^ "שני אירועים בנגב" (in Hebrew). Davar. 21 July 1961.
^ "הדרך החדשה לערד" (in Hebrew). Davar. 5 March 1962.
^ "ממשיכים בפריצת הדרך לערד" (in Hebrew). Davar. 1 May 1962.
^ "הוקפאו עבודות הפיתוח בערד בגלל המשבר בהנהלת החבל" (in Hebrew). Davar. 7 May 1962.
^ "ראשוני מתיישבים בערד - בדצמבר" (in Hebrew). Davar. 26 October 1962.
^ "נחנך הכביש החדש לערד" (in Hebrew). Davar. 15 February 1963.
^ "מכתב שר העבודה להוריו של גרשון דובנבבוים" (in Hebrew).
^ "המכשול האחרון בתוואי הכביש" (in Hebrew). Davar. 4 September 1962.
^ "נחנך כביש ערד - ים המלח" (in Hebrew). Davar. 4 June 1964.
^ "הושלמה סלילת הכביש מערד לים־הםלח" (in Hebrew). Al HaMishmar. 12 May 1964.
^ יניר יגנה (10 October 2012). "כביש 31 לערד: 30 ק"מ שגבו 30 הרוגים בשלוש שנים" (in Hebrew). Haaretz.
^ "כביש 31 בנגב בין שוקת לערד יוצא לדרך" (in Hebrew). Netivei Israel. 27 February 2011.
^ Survey of Israel (31 October 2018). "מחוזות משרד הפנים" [Ministry of Interior districts] (Map). Govmap (in Hebrew). Retrieved 31 October 2018.
^ Survey of Israel (31 October 2018). "גבולות ישובים" [Locality borders] (Map). Govmap (in Hebrew). Retrieved 31 October 2018.
^ "3 צעירים מחורה נהרגו ב"כביש המוות"" [Three youths killed in "Death Road"] (in Hebrew). Radio Darom. 10 September 2016.
^ "כבישים אדומים" [Red roads] (in Hebrew). Or Yarok.
^ Shimon Ifergan (5 November 2012). "300 קילומטרים של כבישים אדומים יש היום בישראל. איפה נעלמו עוד 400?" [There are 300 km of red roads today. Where did 400 more disappear to?] (in Hebrew). Mako.
^ "כביש 31: הרוג בכל חודש בשנתיים האחרונות" [Highway 31: A death every month in the past two years] (in Hebrew). nrg Maariv. 30 January 2013.
^ Dana Yarkzi (3 February 2015). ""כביש הדמים": 87 הרוגים ו-1,399 פצועים בעשר השנים האחרונות" [The "bloody road": 87 killed and 1,399 wounded in the past ten years] (in Hebrew). Walla!.