Israel Faces Major Transport Shutdown for Rosh Hashanah Holiday

Israel is bracing for a near-complete shutdown of public transportation from Friday evening through Sunday, coinciding with the Rosh Hashanah holiday. This extended halt, lasting over 54 hours, will affect trains, light rail, and the vast majority of bus services, significantly limiting travel options for those without private vehicles. The disruption is expected to be particularly acute for individuals planning to visit relatives or requiring access to medical facilities.

"Israel Railways" and most bus operators will cease regular operations. This transport pause effectively merges the Sabbath and the two days of Rosh Hashanah into one prolonged period of limited mobility. The issue of public transport availability on Saturdays has been a growing concern, with data revealing a steady decline in the number of bus routes permitted to operate on the Sabbath. In June 2022, 493 routes had such permits; by August 2024, this number dropped to 431, with a further decrease to 410 projected by the end of 2025.

Even routes with official permits do not guarantee service, as at least 130 routes authorized for Saturday operation do not actually run. Of the officially permitted routes, only about 16% operate throughout the entire Sabbath, primarily serving Arab communities. Some routes begin service only in the latter half of the day, and these have faced disruptions, including protests by ultra-Orthodox demonstrators blocking buses entering Jerusalem.

A critical challenge remains access to hospitals. While transport regulations allow for Sabbath bus services to medical facilities, practical implementation is limited. In Jerusalem, none of the 72 routes that normally serve six major hospitals operate on the Sabbath. Similarly, in central Israel, only 12 out of 256 hospital-related routes are formally permitted for Saturday operation, and even these do not run regularly. This impacts patients, visitors, and some staff needing to reach hospitals like Soroka, Assuta Ashdod, Hillel Yaffe, Laniado, Ziv, and Poriya.

Limited public transportation options do exist in some areas, such as the "Na'im be'Sofashavua" project in Tel Aviv and the Gush Dan region, offering inter-city travel when national services are halted. However, these cover only a small area and cannot substitute for the national network, often becoming overcrowded during peak demand.