Jerusalem, 30 December, 2025 (TPS-IL) — The new Givat Sharett Interchange on Highway 38 in the Beit Shemesh area has opened to traffic. The opening of the interchange is a key stage in the project to upgrade Highway 38 between Tzora and Givat Sharett, which is being carried out by Netivei Israel. The project, worth approximately 200 million Shekels ($62 million), is intended to bring immediate relief to traffic congestion and improve safety and traffic flow on a major transportation artery in the Judean Mountains area.

“The new interchange is the most significant and complex engineering component of the project, and constitutes a milestone in completing the transportation continuum on the axis,” said the Ministry of Transportation.

In parallel with its opening, work is continuing on the section between Tzora and Givat Sharet, which includes widening the road to two-lane and two-lane throughout its length, extensive landscape and archaeological development in the Tel Beit Shemesh Park area, and the completion of the Tel Beit Shemesh Bridge – a unique scenic bridge that unites the two sides of the archaeological site for the benefit of hikers and pedestrians. The work is expected to be completed within approximately four months, after the completion of the Israel Antiquities Authority’s work on the site.

Upon completion of the project, a full, dual-lane, two-lane travel sequence will be completed for the first time along the entire length of Highway 38, from its connection to Highway 1 at the Sha’ar Hagai Interchange in the north to the entrance to the southern neighborhoods of Beit Shemesh.

The Ministry said this sequence will eliminate the last bottlenecks on the route, significantly improve road safety, and strengthen connectivity between Beit Shemesh, Jerusalem, and the center of the country.

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