Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality plans to add about seven kilometers of bus lanes in 2027, as part of its expansion plan to improve the speed and reliability of bus services. The Municipality has set ambitious targets for the next two years: a 25% improvement in bus travel speeds, a 50% improvement in service reliability, and a 30% increase in the number of public transport passengers.
Streets slated for the new bus lanes include: Dizengoff Street (between Yirmiyahu and Ben Gurion Streets); Rothschild Boulevard (from Bezalel Yaffe to Herzl Street); Yitzhak Sadeh Street (from Yigal Alon to Hamasger Street); HaYarkon Street (from Menahamiya to Trumpeldor Street); Derech Rokach (in both directions); and Pinchas Rosen Street. An additional lane is planned at the exit from the Savidor Bus Terminal onto Derech Begin.
Currently, there are some 75 kilometers of bus lanes in Tel Aviv; according to the municipality. The city leads Israel in terms of length of such lanes. In addition to expanding infrastructure, the plan includes new traffic arrangements designed to prioritize buses over cars, as well as improved connectivity between Israel Railways stations, the light rail, and bus lines.
The municipality points to the initial success of one solution already implemented on Kaplan Street, in the section between Dubnov and Ibn Gabirol Streets. Due to construction work for the light rail’s Green Line and a reduction in the number of available traffic lanes, it was not possible to add a dedicated bus lane. Instead, a "traffic filter" has been introduced with cars diverted to an alternative route via Dubnov Street, while buses continue along the direct route toward the city center.
According to municipal data, this measure has resulted in a roughly 70% improvement in bus travel speeds along this stretch, shaving about eight minutes off the journey from the HaShalom railways station to Dizengoff Center.
Tel Aviv deputy mayor Meital Lehavi, who holds the Transport and Road Safety portfolio, said the municipality has set up a unit for public transport planning. This initiative aims to enable the city to play an active and influential role, even though the authority to plan and operate public transport rests with the state. Lehavi added that the municipality hopes the formation of a new Knesset will facilitate the establishment of a metropolitan authority, which would transfer additional powers to local authorities.
The plan is being released amid extensive infrastructure work throughout the city, including light rail construction and preparations for the Metro, which will pose a significant challenge to traffic in Tel Aviv in the coming years.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on November 15, 2026.
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