The tender process is opening for Israel's Road 531 project, which will link Tel Aviv with Sharon. The highway contract will form part of the country's largest ever road project, according to the 2602 Israel National Roads Company. This East-West link will help deal with growing traffic congestion and reduce journey times, particularly at peak periods. It will also improve safety levels for road users and help reduce the numbers of non-serious nose to tail accidents during busy times of the day, which result in few serious injuries but can cause lane closures and additional delays. The first section of the route open to bidding is for the central stretch of the road that will connect Ranana, Kefar Saba and Herzilya with Tel Aviv as well as the North-South road, the Coastal Highway and Netivei Ayalon Highway. This 17km section will be the key link of the route and will have a maximum speed limit of 110km/h. As part of the project, the work will also include a northward extension to the Netivei Ayalon Highway to connect it with Shefayim. The project includes work to 11 interchanges and 36 highway bridges, with from four-six lanes in either direction at various locations. Construction will take 36 months to complete.
