(Click on image to ENLARGE) Downtown Yerushalayim on Monday morning and early afternoon was literally at a standstill for hours as the light rail system track work moves to Jaffa Street. Buses were halted from Machane Yehuda stretching to King George Street, and traffic from Safra Square City Hall Plaza was equally congested heading towards the town center.

King George Street was also tied up in knots as police, city inspectors, Egged inspectors and construction personnel all worked to begin setting up barricades and detour signs as the heart of downtown Yerushalayim is converted to a major construction zone. All buses are being rerouted, and one can expect nothing but delays and more delays as the tentacles of the light rail construction continue engulfing additional areas of the city.

The map accompanying this article was distributed by city officials in an effort to give riders an idea of the new bus routes.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)