Elderly Passengers Endangered by Bus Ticketing Requirement
תומצת מתוך Zman Yisrael על ידי baba
Elderly Israelis are at risk of injury from falls on buses due to mandatory ticket validation, prompting Tel Aviv Deputy Mayor Meital Lehavi to urge the Transportation Minister to cancel the requirement. Over the past decade, 1,520 people, mostly seniors, have been hospitalized from bus falls. Lehavi suggests using existing technology to track senior riders for accounting purposes, avoiding physical danger. The Ministry of Transportation has not yet responded.
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- Elderly passengers face injury risks from mandatory bus ticket validation, especially on electric buses.
- 1,520 people, mostly seniors, hospitalized for bus falls in the last decade; seven died.
- Tel Aviv Deputy Mayor Meital Lehavi demands cancellation of ticketing for seniors.
- Lehavi cites existing technology as a solution for accounting without passenger risk.
- Passengers with valid passes have been fined due to malfunctioning validation machines.
Elderly passengers are at risk of falling and sustaining injuries on public buses due to the requirement to validate their travel before taking a seat, especially on newer electric buses with rapid acceleration. In Tel Aviv-Yafo, Deputy Mayor Meital Lehavi has called on Transportation Minister Miri Regev to abolish this ticketing mandate for seniors, who are entitled to free travel. Lehavi stated that the current procedure creates a serious safety hazard, particularly for older individuals with balance issues, as they must navigate the bus to the validation machine immediately after boarding.
Data from the Gertner Institute for Epidemiology and Health Policy Research at Sheba Medical Center reveals that 1,520 people were hospitalized due to falls on buses over the past decade, with over two-thirds being seniors, predominantly women. More than 150 such hospitalizations occur annually, not including those treated and released. Among those hospitalized, 16% required rehabilitation, seven died, and 11 were severely injured.
Lehavi argues that the cost of treating injured passengers far outweighs the administrative cost of ticketing for accounting purposes between the Ministry of Transportation and bus companies. She points to existing technology, such as sensors used by Electra buses to count passengers for fare evasion monitoring, as a potential solution to track senior riders for accounting without requiring them to validate their tickets. Another proposed solution by Eyal Hershtik, Director of the Road Safety Staff at the Tel Aviv Municipality, involves installing validation machines at bus stops, allowing passengers to validate their tickets while waiting.
The article also highlights instances where passengers who are exempt from payment or have already paid through monthly passes are fined for not validating, even when the validation machines are malfunctioning. One student, who had a valid daily pass but encountered a non-responsive validator, was fined 180 shekels, and her appeal was rejected.
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