[BS] The Old City Loop: A Light Rail Vision for Jerusalem’s Future

What if you could circle the entire Old City of Jerusalem - comfortably, accessibly, and beautifully? In this episode of Brainstreams, we explore a future-facing vision for a dedicated light rail line that loops around the Old City walls. From smart routing and grade calculations to archaeological sensitivity and pedestrian flow, this Brainstream dives deep into a generative design sprint born from both data and lived experience. TL;DR: A Jerusalem city loop light rail around all seven gates could transform access, beauty, and spiritual flow - this is the design pitch. We discuss multi-line integration (red, brown, yellow), how to preserve archaeology while opening new paths, grading challenges, and why a humble footpath + rail combo might be the most transformative layer Jerusalem’s had in decades. 🎧 Listen now on ⁠Spotify⁠, ⁠YouTube⁠, or ⁠Apple Podcasts⁠ → More at ⁠avrahamraskin.com/podcast⁠ Timestamps: 00:00 | Intro: What is the Old City Loop? 00:43 | Green space, walking path, and rail: the triple-ring vision 01:58 | The gaps in Jerusalem’s current light rail access 03:06 | Seven gates, one loop: walking through the plan 05:01 | Grades, curvature, and optimal timing 06:13 | Integrating with existing and future lines (Red, Yellow, Brown) 07:30 | One-way loop + second-direction bus support 09:23 | Accessibility at Shaar Tzion & other grading concerns 10:00 | Park & Ride potential near Damascus and Dung Gates 12:04 | New Gate tradeoffs & archaeological bridge ideas 13:06 | Solving steep terrain with design sensitivity 14:39 | Closing thoughts: Could this really happen?