The beginning of the civil year of 2003 today also marks the star of several new government programs. The tax reforms take effect today, as well as a new points systems for traffic violations. Gas prices were upped by 6% last night, and public transportation rose by some 4%. The last remaining restrictions on foreign currency have been removed as well. Quarries throughout Israel were shut down today in an open-ended strike that may lead to the laying off of thousands of truckers and others in the construction business. The government had demanded that the owners and operators compete in new tenders in order to continue operations. The latter rejected a compromise proposal putting the issue on hold for ten weeks, and the strike is now on.