Inner-city bus fares are set to rise yet again in January, this time from 8 NIS to 9 NIS due to a disagreement between Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Transportation Minister Miri Regev regarding budget cuts.
The "Derech Shavah" reform, launched in 2022, initially set the fare at just 5.5 NIS.
Within less than three years, the fares jumped drastically: in July 2024, the fare increased to 6 NIS, in April 2025, there was a 45% hike to 8 NIS, and now, the fare is expected to rise again.
Behind the fare hikes is the need to fund the "Transportation Justice" reform, which grants fare discounts to some 80% of the population. To advance the reform, Regev had to approve the fare hikes and even cancel funding that was intended to expand bus lines and improve service frequency.
Despite the Transportation Minister's open opposition, the Finance Ministry claims that without budget cuts, the fare increases are inevitable.