There is a serious chance you can die in Israel from taking the train, riding the bus or driving a bike. Electric bikes are mowing down people left, right and center but even the train is a risk.
It’s official. Using any form of responsible or public transportation in Israel can get you killed: three carriages of a commuter train between the cities of Herzliya and Netanya caught fire this morning, seriously injuring one passenger, with 78 others moderately or lightly injured. Several were hurt while jumping off the train.
In November, one man was killed and three more severely injured when a truck driver intentionally smashed his truck into a bus stop in Akko. And in May, 5 people were killed on the Egged bus around the Akko area as the bus driver side-swiped a transport trailer. Fifty-six more people were injured. The bus driver was charged for aggressive driving.
Cycling accidents are growing exponentially in the country. Hits and runs, and deaths by car are far too common. Marine environmental activist from Ecoconcrete Shimrit Finkel was killed on a scooter going to pick her kid of from pre-school.
“Riding in Israel today is super-dangerous,” says Bonnie Eshel who heads an Israeli biking federation. “Practically every day there are accidents, and the fact that we don’t have a higher number of fatalities is more a matter of luck. I feel this personally. One time they will throw things at me from a car that is traveling 80 kilometers an hour, another time they spray water, and once they even held a knife to me from out of the car window.”
All arrows are indicating that people start buying ecologically disastrous cars to stay safe. What do you think?
Update 2023: the electric scooter, mopeds and electric bike scene is out of control with accidents daily, usually involving pedestrians on the sidewalk.
More about public transportation in Israel:
The Tel Aviv Train Project Chugs Along
A Converted Bus in Israel
Israel a Nation of Cycling Freaks
But Hummers??? That, I hope, is not the message. Teaching people in this country to be less aggresive, drive slower, think before you buy, throw away, drive your car when you could walk or take a bus…these are messages that I read on this site. And good for you!
Uh, excuse me, but what does an issue like dangers of riding on a commuter train have to do with helping our environment – which is supposed to be the main idea of this blog?
Commuter trains, especially here in Israel are here to result in less cars being driven on the motorways, which is one of the main causes of air pollution in this country as well as deaths from road accidents.
It’s unfortunate this happened, and now it’s up to the authorities to make sure the trains are safer and better maintained (the cause of the fire has now been attributed to a fuel leakage which caught fire).
Designing commuter trains, or buses, to be virtual death traps is not very sound.It might be a good idea to go back to the older designs which had windows that actually opened and manually opening doors.
Using public transport in Israel can cost you your life. That is the message, Maurice.