Holon City Tightens Parking Rules, Introduces Fees for Residents

The Holon Municipality is implementing a parking reform that will require residents with a digital parking permit to park for free and without time limits only within their designated parking zone. These permits will be valid until December 31, 2028, with enforcement beginning January 1, 2027. Each resident is entitled to two permits, and a household can have a maximum of four. The permits are for owners of private vehicles weighing up to 4 tons. Applications are to be submitted online via the municipality's website. The first permit will cost 13.60 shekels, with each additional permit costing 67.80 shekels. Permits will not be valid without payment. Holders of disability permits are exempt from the new permit requirement. This contrasts with many neighboring cities, including Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, Givatayim, Bat Yam, and Petah Tikva, where resident parking permits are issued free of charge. Rishon LeZion charges 5 shekels for a three-year permit. Some Holon residents have launched a petition against the new fees.

The reform aligns with an amendment to the Road Traffic Ordinance, effective January 1, 2027, mandating cities with over 120,000 residents to divide areas into parking zones. Under this amendment, free resident parking will be restricted to their zone of residence, with fees applying outside it. Currently, this reform applies to 15 cities: Jerusalem, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Haifa, Rishon LeZion, Petah Tikva, Ashdod, Netanya, Bnei Brak, Be'er Sheva, Holon, Beit Shemesh, Ramat Gan, Ashkelon, Rehovot, and Bat Yam. Originally slated for January 1, 2025, and intended for cities with populations over 40,000, the reform was postponed by two years and the population threshold raised by the Knesset's Economic Committee in December 2024. Additionally, from the same date, the parking fee difference between city residents and non-residents cannot exceed 30%. An attempt to further delay the reform before the Knesset's dissolution was blocked by ultra-Orthodox parties.