Tel Aviv new fast lane tolls unveiled

The fast lanes being built on the coastal highway (Road 2) and the Ayalon Highway (Road 20) will open at the start of next year. Commuters who prefer to travel by public transport on the fast lane shuttle buses will travel at a guaranteed minimum speed of 70 kilometers per hour in the rush hour instead of the average speed of 14 kilometers an hour on the Ayalon. Those who travel on the fast lanes in their own cars will pay three figure tolls.

The fast lanes project covers a total of 120 kilometers and has been the focus of intensive efforts in recent years by the Netivei Ayalon Co. and the Ministry of Transport. The new fast lanes will extend from the Netanya Interchange on the Coastal Road in the north and along the Ayalon Highway to Rishon Lezion in the south. The project is costing billions of shekels and is a joint public-private project with the Dan, Electra and Danya Cebus consortium.

The project has involved major engineering work, such as building an additional lane over the Ayalon river. The direction of travel on the lanes will change – from north to south or vice versa – depending on congestion. Over the years, some of the construction of the additional lanes has been completed, and until the opening of the fast lanes, have been serving as a bus, taxi and car pool lane.

Thousands of free parking spaces

The fast lanes’ planners promise a minimum travel speed of 70 kilometers per hour throughout the day, including peak hours when typically traffic on the Ayalon crawls at an average speed of 14 kilometers per hour. At the start of these lanes, parking lots with thousands of free parking spaces are being built in Shefayim and Rishon LeZion, and from there free shuttles will depart that will travel along the lanes to major urban centers.

According to draft regulations by the Ministry of Transport, priority will be given to buses, and free passage on the lanes for vehicles with three or more passengers. If there is space left on the lane for maintaining speed, it will also be opened to vehicles that include only a driver, who will pay over NIS 100 for the entire trip.

The high pricing reflects the cost of traffic jams in terms of lost time, air pollution and road accidents. In fact, the pricing ensures that those who choose to travel on the fast lane during rush hour will pay a similar fee, according to sources involved in the project, to paying a fine for traveling on a bus lane.

According to the regulations, “The fee on the toll lanes on Highways 2 and 20 is not dynamic, and will be set in advance at the end of the week for the following week, according to the traffic congestion on these roads (on the regular lanes and on the various toll lanes) during the previous week. This will be done by day, time and user group.”

“Serves few people”

As part of the project, the lanes will be divided into sections: four northbound and three southbound, but at any given time there will be six active sections, two of which will change direction (from the Netanya interchange to Shefayim and vice versa, depending on the direction of the traffic). These lanes will be closed to motorcyclists and truck drivers.

The trip southbound will be divided into three travel sections: from the Netanya interchange to Gaash or the Ma’apilim Interchange; from the end point of the previous section to the Ma’apilim/Halakhah interchange; and between the end point of the previous section and the Wolfson interchange. In each such section, the payment will be between NIS 7 shekels and NIS 105.

The trip northbound will be divided into four sections, as stated: from Mevo Ayalon to Tel Giborim/Hashalom Interchange; from the end point of the previous section to Rokach/Herzliya; from the end point of the previous section to the Ma’apilim Interchange/Gaash; from the end point of the previous section to the Netanya interchange. Here too, the payment for each such section will also be between NIS 7 and NIS 105.

According to the protocols, “These lanes will be added to the existing fast lane on Road 1, and will help with congestion in the Greater Tel Aviv metropolitan area,” but this assumption is controversial. Experts say the fast lanes are a huge investment targeting those living in the suburbs, but will only serve a few people at a high cost and perpetuate the existing planning situation, by “educating” passengers to continue choosing to travel by car (using free parking and shuttles) instead of leaving home by public transport, thus only moving traffic jams and not solving them.

Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai has expressed resolute opposition to the continuation of the project on Road 5, including construction of giant parking lots. The National Planning and Building Council, representatives of the Ministry of Finance and others recently postponed, and in effect shelved, the Road 5 fast lane project.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on May 8, 2025.

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