Transport Minister Miri Regev and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said a planned rise in bus and rail fares, due on June 25, will now be delayed until January 2027, after the Knesset election. They also announced plans to end the index-linking of fares, a move that would permanently increase the state's subsidy for public transport if carried out.
Today, passenger payments cover less than 20% of the real cost of public transport. The article says government money that could have gone to more bus lines and higher frequencies is instead being used to keep fares low. That is happening even though surveys conducted by the Transport Ministry through the Public Transportation Authority found that passengers are more concerned about poor frequency, missing routes, unreliable service and longer travel times than about ticket prices.
Since Regev returned as transport minister, official fares have risen by about 45%. At the same time, she introduced a 50% discount for economically weaker population centers, most of whose residents are Haredi, and additional discounts for peripheral areas. Passengers in cities such as Tel Aviv, Rishon LeZion, Holon and Bat Yam continue to pay full fare.
At the start of her term, Regev complained that the bus lanes created by her predecessor, Merav Michaeli, were empty and taking up road space that could be used by private cars. In response, she moved to weaken enforcement against private cars in those lanes and changed the rules so a driver plus one passenger could use them, instead of requiring two passengers. The article says she did not focus on filling bus priority lanes or improving service, but on using public transport funds for political reforms such as "transportation justice," which benefited coalition voters without improving efficiency.
