Israel’s Knesset Economic Committee on Tuesday approved, for second and third readings, a bill to create metropolitan public transit authorities that would move substantial powers from the Transportation Ministry to local leaders. The reform, which follows decades of failed attempts and months of negotiations, is meant to give municipalities control over public transport planning in large urban regions. Committee chair MK David Bitan said the measure also includes canceling the so-called “parking law,” which had required private parking lots to charge by the minute.
Under the bill, the first metropolitan authorities will be set up in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa, with a fourth later in Beersheba. Each authority will be run by a council headed by local government representatives. If the bill is finally approved by the full Knesset, these bodies will oversee most public transit matters in their areas, including bus routes and frequencies, bicycle lane networks, traffic-light control centers, taxi licensing, and camera-based enforcement of bus-lane violations.
The agreement on voting power gives 80 percent weight to a city’s population and 20 percent to the amount of active public transit lanes in its territory. In the Tel Aviv metro, Tel Aviv-Jaffa will have the largest voting share, ranging from 26 percent to 32 percent depending on the council structure. The Tel Aviv region will initially include Bnei Brak, Holon, Ramat Gan, Bat Yam, Herzliya, Givatayim, Ramat HaSharon, and Kiryat Ono, with Rishon LeZion joining in January 2029. Jerusalem’s metro will include Abu Ghosh, Mateh Yehuda, Kiryat Ye’arim, and Tzur Hadassah, while Haifa’s will include the Krayot, Nesher, Tirat Carmel, Rechasim, and Zevulun Regional Council.
The parking-law repeal would return private lots to the previous billing system, charging for the first full hour and then by quarter-hour, and would take effect four months after publication in the official gazette. The wider law is expected to take effect about six months after final approval and publication. Transportation Ministry director general Moshe Ben Zaken called it a “historic day,” saying Israel is taking a major step toward decentralization and more efficient transport management after nearly 30 years of efforts. Ramat Gan Mayor Carmel Shama Hacohen and Tel Aviv Deputy Mayor Asaf Zamir also welcomed the move, with Zamir saying better transit would affect traffic, cost of living, housing prices, and quality of life. The committee will continue discussing some implementation arrangements for Gush Dan in the coming days.
