Israel Railways began partial operations on the Eastern Rail Line on June 28, 2026. The launch included the inauguration of three new stations: Hadera East, Shomron - Tayyiba, and Kokhav Yair - Tira.

Israel Railways announced the partial opening of the line on its website and entrusted the newly-opened section to Netivei Israel. The Eastern Rail Line is part of the Israel Railways "Connecting Israel" master plan, which aims to extend rail service from Kiryat Shmona in the North to Eilat in the South.

The new line diverges from the coastal railway north of Hadera and proceeds south along the eastern side of Israel's coastal plain to Rosh HaAyin Station. The full length of the line, which is still under construction, is designed to continue south past Ben-Gurion Airport to Lod Station, where it will reconnect with the existing Israel Railways network. Upon full completion, the line will be 64 kilometers long and allow north-south passengers to bypass the Tel Aviv rail corridor.

Passengers using the three new stations can travel to the expanded Rosh HaAyin Station. The connection from Rosh HaAyin Station to Tel Aviv takes approximately seven minutes. The total travel time from Hadera East to Tel Aviv, including connection time, is one hour. Service is not yet available north of Hadera East along the new line, and passengers must travel via Rosh HaAyin to reach Tel Aviv from these new stations. This contrasts with the preexisting Hadera West Station, where passengers can reach Tel Aviv in just over 30 minutes via the existing coastal railway.

Israel Railways stated the new line operates with two trains per hour from Sunday through Thursday between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. The company stated new bus lines are set to serve the newly inaugurated stations, which feature hundreds of parking spaces and bicycle facilities. The line will initially use older diesel trains and is undergoing electrification for future service by newer electric rolling stock.

The state-owned company stated that the fully operational Eastern Rail Line is projected to increase the railway network's capacity by approximately 30%. Israel Railways added that this capacity increase provides the system with added flexibility to accommodate growing demand. Service is set to be extended upon the completion of the full line to Lod, which will include the inauguration of the Shoham - Aviation and Elad stations.