A new survey by the Manufacturers Association of Israel says industrial zones across the country remain poorly served by public transportation, leaving many workers dependent on private arrangements. The survey found that factories are often hard to reach because of a lack of direct routes, low frequency, distant stops and schedules that do not match shift work, which increases travel time and costs for workers and forces employers to fund private transport solutions.
The poll was conducted in May and June 2026 among 204 industrialists nationwide. It found that 83% said fewer than one-third of their workers commute by public transit, and for 62.6% the share was 10% or less. The situation is worse in the periphery, where about 75% of respondents in the North and South reported very low public-transit use among employees, and about 81% said their factory’s connection to public transit is low or almost nonexistent.
About half of factory workers, the survey said, do not have a direct bus route and must make one or more transfers. Roughly 70% of industrialists said transit schedules do not fit factory start and end times, and about 92% said there is no train station within a meaningful walking distance of the plant. Around 80% said there has been no improvement in the past decade, and in some cases conditions have worsened.
The manufacturers’ group said the lack of access is now a major operational and economic barrier, with close to 40% saying it significantly complicates recruitment and retention. More than half of factories, 52% overall and about 62% in the North and South, have had to pay for private employee shuttles. About 33% said they are not entitled to a tax exemption for offering those rides, even though they still provide them. The association warned of an “unreasonable trap” and said the state must plan industrial-zone transit around work hours and plant locations without turning employer-funded shuttles into an additional tax burden.
