A new ticket price reform for public transportation will be taking place beginning January 1st, 2016.
The reform will affect the majority of the Israeli population and be focused on Israel’s metropolises and their surrounding areas.
Under the new reforms, single rides and the use of monthly passes will stay the same, but the cost will go down by a few shekels. However, both daily and weekly passes will be added, and will include geographic locations outside of the main metropolitan cities of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Be’er Sheva and Haifa.
The tariffs will be determined based upon a three ring system for each metropolitan area. With the largest ring of Tel Aviv extending from Mikhmoret in the North to include Ashdod in the south and Modi’in in the east.
Jerusalem’s outer ring will also include Modi’in, making travel to the city more affordable and accessible to both major metropolitan centers. It will also extend to Kiryat Arba in the south, Ofra in the North and the Dead Sea in the East. Both Mevaseret Tzion as well as Ma’aleh Adumim will now be included in the price of an ‘interior Jerusalem’ monthly pass, with Gush Etzion, being included in the second ring.
Be’er Sheva’s outer ring will include Sderot, Yeruham, Dimona, and Arad, and will extend all the way up to Adora in Judea.
Haifa’s outer ring will extend up to the border of Lebanon, and include Rosh Hanikra, Shlomi, Ma’alot Tarshiha, Karmiel, Nazereth and Zichron Yaakov in the south.
By using the new ring system and regional tariff prices, as well as by combining all service providers and public transportation lines into one ticket, the Ministry of Transportation hopes to increase the use of public transportation and lower the amount of cars on the road as well as car accidents.
Each geographic region or section of the ring will have its own pricing that will be available for transportation just in that zone, or for that zone and connecting to the main metropolitan hub of the region. These prices will be an all inclusive fare, so that commuters will be able to jump on and off buses, trains, light rails, Metronit bus lines, as many times as they wish within the same day, week or month, depending upon what their transportation needs are.
All of the passes, include unlimited travel within the selected region, regardless of provider, and will therefore cut down the amount of extra travel in a specific location. Another benefit according to the ministry is that the new system will allow for travelers to shift their perspective when planning an outing from a single destination, to travel throughout a region. This will allow for a traveler or family to hop on and hop off of all modes of public transportation within their chosen metropolitan area, without having to worry about paying for another fare.
Currently there are no planned changes to any transportation lines or route numbers, and the ministry has said that all current rides that have previously been purchased on Rav Kav cards will be accepted until they run out.
The new system of passes will be available to travelers in possession of a Rav Kav card only. Singe destination rides will still be available for purchase. Prices vary based upon desired region of travel.
A phone line and website have been set up by the ministry in an effort to help the public adapt to the new system. the phone number is *8787. As of now the website only exists in Hebrew.