Petroleum Road

Petroleum Road
Petroleum Road
Tapline Road
	The Petroleum Road
Route information
Length	45 km (28 mi)
Major junctions
South end	Orha Junction
North end	Ghajar

The Petroleum Road or Tapline Road (Hebrew: כביש הנפט, Kvish HaNeft) is a 47 km (29 mi) long, privately owned north-south asphalt road in the Golan Heights. The name Petroleum Road derives from the now defunct oil pipeline of the Trans-Arabian Pipeline Company, which the road runs adjacent to. It begins near Mount Peres on the east edge of the central Golan and ends in the northern Golan near the Israeli-occupied Golan-Lebanese frontier, nearby Ghajar.

Most of it is marked on maps as inaccessible because of poor road quality.^[a]

Since the road diagonally bisects the entire length of the northern portion of the Golan Heights, it was the site of many battles fought along its axis during the Yom Kippur War in 1973.

The Trans-Arabian Pipeline

The Trans-Arabian Pipeline was established as part of a joint initiative of several American companies, and it stretches 1,214 km from Qaisumah in Saudi Arabia to the port of Sidon in Lebanon. During the Six-Day War, Israel took control of a 47 km section of the pipeline but permitted its operation to continue. However, due to various problems, the pipeline fell out of use.

In May 1969, PFLP fighters from Lebanon infiltrated and blew up the pipeline in the area near Ghajar. 8,000 tons of oil spilled into Nahal Si'on and from there flowed through the Banias River and the Jordan River to the Kinneret.^[1]^[2] Following this, the dirt road along the pipeline was paved and fenced. In September 1969, a Mekorot tractor hit a pipeline near Kibbutz Shamir.^[3]

The Golan Heights section stopped transporting petroleum in 1976. Today, the pipeline is used to transport water from various boreholes in the Golan.

The road

The length of the road accompanying the Golan Heights pipeline is 45 km (28 mi). The southernmost 2 km were destroyed when Israel constructed its forward line of defensive fortifications opposite the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria after the Six-Day War. In addition, the northernmost 4 km is generally not considered part of the Petroleum Road but is rather part of Route 999.

Since the Petroleum Road is private, and not maintained by the Israeli transport authority, it has not been assigned a number.

In 2015, road renovation works^[4] were completed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority. The section of the road between the Revaya junction and the Banias junction was renovated and was safe for all types of vehicles. As part of the works, four viewing points were erected along the section. Fences were also removed on part of the route to open an ecological corridor along the Golan.

Junctions (South to North)

District^[5]	Location^[6]	km	mi	Name	Destinations
Northern	Yonatan	0	0.0	צומת אורחה (Orha Junction)	Highway 98
	Keshet	8	5.0	צומת קשת (Keshet Junction)	Highway 87
	Camp Yitzhak	17	11	צומת נפח (Naffakh Junction)	Highway 91
	Kela Alon	26	16	צומת רוויה (Revaya Junction)	Route 959
	Banias	41	25	צומת בניאס (Banias Junction)	Highway 99
	Ghajar	45	28	גבול לבנון (Lebanese Border)
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Places of interest on the route

Mount Paras
Keshet Yehonatan Field School in Keshet
Memorial monument for the IDF's 188th Armored Brigade
Orvim Creek Nature Preserve
Camp Yitzhak
A view of Tel Faher, where the Golani Brigade fought a battle
Banias archaeological site

Notes

^ The Hebrew guide מדריך כרטא, (Madrikh Karta), by Azaria Alon, ISBN 965-220-528-1, uses the term כביש משובש ("broken road") for the entire route. Another map, published by Mapa (http://www.mapa.co.il) in 2001, uses a similar term for the portion between Highway 91 and Route 959.

References

^ "Oil Spreads into Sea of Galilee Following Terrorist Attack on Pipeline in Golan". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. June 2, 1969.
^ "ISRAELI PIPELINE TERMED A TARGET". New York Times. June 15, 1971.
^ "נפגע צנור טפליין – ברמה". Davar. September 30, 1969.
^ "הגולן מתחדש - עבודות לשיקום ציר הנפט". Shishi BaGolan. March 13, 2015.
^ Survey of Israel (October 31, 2018). "מחוזות משרד הפנים" [Ministry of Interior districts] (Map). Govmap (in Hebrew). Retrieved October 31, 2018.
^ Survey of Israel (October 31, 2018). "גבולות ישובים" [Locality borders] (Map). Govmap (in Hebrew). Retrieved October 31, 2018.

External links

TAPLINE

33°0′55″N 35°45′58″E / 33.01528°N 35.76611°E / 33.01528; 35.76611

[1] The Hebrew guide מדריך כרטא, (Madrikh Karta), by Azaria Alon, ISBN 965-220-528-1, uses the term כביש משובש ("broken road") for the entire route. Another map, published by Mapa (http://www.mapa.co.il) in 2001, uses a similar term for the portion between Highway 91 and Route 959.

[2] "Oil Spreads into Sea of Galilee Following Terrorist Attack on Pipeline in Golan". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. June 2, 1969.

[3] "ISRAELI PIPELINE TERMED A TARGET". New York Times. June 15, 1971.

[4] "נפגע צנור טפליין – ברמה". Davar. September 30, 1969.

[5] "הגולן מתחדש - עבודות לשיקום ציר הנפט". Shishi BaGolan. March 13, 2015.

[6] Survey of Israel (October 31, 2018). "מחוזות משרד הפנים" [Ministry of Interior districts] (Map). Govmap (in Hebrew). Retrieved October 31, 2018.

[7] Survey of Israel (October 31, 2018). "גבולות ישובים" [Locality borders] (Map). Govmap (in Hebrew). Retrieved October 31, 2018.

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