Road Safety Authority Warns of Dangerous Ayalon Highway Lane

The CEO of the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), Gili Cohen, has warned the CEO of Ayalon Highways, Orly Stern, about the dangerous nature of a new fast lane on the Ayalon Highway. In a letter, Cohen described the lane as a "new risk center" and highlighted infrastructure and enforcement deficiencies. This warning comes after a series of accidents have occurred since the lane's opening.

Cohen presented alarming statistics for the first three months of the lane's operation, during which five serious road accidents occurred at its interface, resulting in two fatalities. In all five incidents, a vehicle or motorcycle crossed the yellow line or separation bollards and collided with a vehicle in the fast lane. Cohen explained that the lane's design, which features buses traveling at high speeds adjacent to congested traffic lanes, separated only by bollards intended to limit crossing, increases the likelihood of driver error and the severity of resulting collisions due to speed differentials.

He emphasized the "safe system" approach, stating that "the road must be as forgiving as possible and absorb human errors to protect road users." Cohen added that "the transportation system must be designed so that an error does not end in death or serious injury." He requested an urgent meeting with Ayalon Highways engineering and planning staff, the police, and the NRSA to discuss alternatives and review traffic monitoring data before the meeting.

These concerns were underscored by an accident the previous day on the Ayalon Highway southbound near the Rokach Interchange, where 17 people were injured. A minibus attempting to enter the public transport lane by crossing the yellow bollards collided with a bus, then hit a concrete wall. The minibus driver was initially in moderate condition but later deteriorated to very serious. A 17-year-old girl sustained moderate injuries, and 15 others had minor injuries.