The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality is launching the first *free* public transportation system on the Friday nights and Saturdays (the Jewish Sabbath/Shabbat) across the city and surrounding areas. The busses will run from Friday evening through Saturday evening. The Jewish Sabbath lasts from Friday at sundown until Saturday at sundown, and normal public transportation is not available during this time.
The new weekend bus network was made possible with the collaboration of additional municipalities including Ramat HaSharon, Givatayim, and Kiryat Ono. This intercity network will consist of seven bus lines that will cover the Tel Aviv area. Times and routes will be decided by the various authorities involved and real-time information and schedules will be available to users via the new accompanying transportation app as soon as it is launched. Scheduling and updates will also be available via the other common transportation apps such as Moovit and Google maps.
“The project is already gaining widespread interest from additional authorities and is expected to provide a suitable transportation solution for approximately four million metropolitan residents,” the city said. This bus network is the newest addition to the current weekend transportation methods that include the Moniot Sherut (shred taxis), AutoTel, and Tel-O-Fun.
The initiative came following ongoing public outcry for a weekend transportation solution. The service is hoping to relieve congestion and parking issues.
Bus lines for new Weekend Transportation
705 (Green Route):
Ha’Ma’avak, Giv’atayim > Wolfson Medical Center
Every half hour
706 (Red Route):
Morasha, Ramat HaSharon > Jaffa Port
Every half hour
707 (Purple Route):
Sokolov, Ramat HaSharon > Jaffa Port
Every half hour
708 (Blue Route):
Ramat HaHayyal, Tel Aviv > Wolfson Medical Center
Every half hour
709 (Yellow Route):
Cinema City, Glilot > Menahem Begin Park
Every half hour
710 (Pink Route):
Pisgat Ono Quarter, Kiryat Ono > Gane Yehoshu’a
Every hour
Detailed information about bus lines and stops can be found on the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality website.
Important Information
- The buses will run on Fridays between 18:00 and 02:00, and on Saturdays between 09:00 and 17:00.
- The buses and relevant stations will be marked accordingly
- Every third bus (every hour and a half) will be accessible to people with disabilities. Passengers can also order an accessible bus ahead of time.
- At this stage, the transportation service will be offered free of charge and passengers will be able to move freely from one bus line to another.
Moniot Sherut (Shared taxi service)
Another option besides the public buses are the moniot sherut, or shared taxis. These 10-seater mini-buses run on designated routes throughout Israel at all hours of the day, 7 days a week. You can catch a sherut from designated locations, usually the central bus station of a city. Once you get on, tell the driver where you would like to go, pay a fixed fare (this fare will increase slightly on Shabbat and holidays), and then wait for the rest of the seats to fill. The sherut will leave the designated location once it is full, and will drop off and pick up additional passengers along the set route. While there is not an exact schedule, they are very reliable if you are not in a rush. Most sheruts run between major cities, but Tel Aviv also has its own sherut lines, the 4 and 5, which drive two different round-trip routes between the Central Bus Station in the south up to the north end of the city.
