Busses that don’t come or don’t stop if they do come, low frequency of arrivals, crowding and extreme congestion as well as dirty seats. These are just some of the major complaints that Israelis have about their public transportation system that have been received by the Public Transportation Consumer Organization known as “15 Minutes”. The organization will be presenting a copy of their annual report illustrating problematic bus routes throughout the country, to a special hearing of the Finance Committee in the Knesset on Monday.

According to a report that appeared on Ynet, the organization received some 8,000 complaints in the past year, more than 55 percent of which have to do with buses running late or not showing up at all at their stations or even skipping their stations. These infractions qualify for a suspension of the tender issued to public transportation companies. Some 26 percent of the complaints revolve around low-level service and include, overcrowding, low frequency of arrivals, a lack of orchestration between busses, and timetables not matching up with the train schedule. Only 8 percent of the complaints were regarding an unpleasant experience once the passengers were on board.

15 Minutes mapped out the most problematic bus routes across the country based on which ones receive the most complaints. According to the data collected, the worst bus line in the country is route 605 which runs between Netanya and Tel Aviv and is operated by Nativ Express. Coming in at second place is route 55 between Kiryat Ono and Tel Aviv, a line which is run by the Kavim Bus Company. Spots 3 and 5 belong to bus routes 19 and 6 in Israel’s capital of Jerusalem, both lines are run by Egged. Both of these lines, but especially the 19 route, are at the center of a controversy and protest by students regarding the poor state of public transportation in the capital.

Filling out the top ten are Egged route 249 between Petach Tikva and Rehovot, Nativ Express Route 608 between Netanya and Tel Aviv, Dan lines 82 and 66 that connect Tel Aviv to Petach Tikva are tied for the seventh spot. Dan route 142 between Bat Yam and Tel Aviv took the eighth spot. Number nine went to Dan route 289 between Holn and Tel Aviv, and he tenth spot went to Dan line number 1 that travels along the future route of the Red Line of Tel  Aviv’s planned light rail and connects Petach Tikvah to Bat Yam.

Responding to the publication of the annual report, the Spokespeople for the Transportation Ministry said: “There are tens od thousands of buses and more than 500 trains that provide daily service to more than two million coomuters in Israel. There is an organization tat is tasked with overseeing the quality assurance of the public transportation proivders that has been appointed by the Transportation Ministry. They deal with any infraction or complaint with the strictest disciplinary measures, including issuing fines that amount to tens of millions of shekel each year.”

The Ministry also took 15 Minutes to task. “The statistics compiled by 15 Minutes do not represent the big picture regarding the current status of the public transportation system. Professional studies, for example like the one  performed by the National Bureau of Statistics, as well as details that are compiled daily from each ride, testify to the high level of satisfaction that is on the rise by commuters who use the public transportation system. The Transportation Mministry will continue to work to improve the public transportation system throughout the country and will endeavor to implement new and technologically advanced transportation systems in and around large metropolitan centers across the country.”

Among the issues that will be raised tomorrow by 15 Minutes during the committee discussion, is the 99 towns that do not have a public transportation system at all and which no bus or train passes through.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)