The Death of the Jerusalem Central Bus Station

Cross-posted on me-ander 

I used to love the Jerusalem Central Bus Station, because it was a lot more than just a bus stop. The present building is relatively new, having been totally rebuilt and only opened in late 2001. It was/is a small, easy to navigate mall, with buses and a synagogue (that even has a room for women to doven or say Tihillim, psalms,) shops and food places of all sorts. It used to be pleasant enough as a mall just to go in to shop or eat.

I had heard all the reports about the high levels of air pollution and the fact that it hadn't been planned well, but that was more a danger to those who worked there, who spent hours there day after day. For the traveler or shopper there was always less danger.

But just under a year ago we, travelers to and from Judea and Samaria were totally banished from there. OK, we can go and take a bus to Sderot or Tel Aviv, but we can't take a bus to Shiloh or Tel Tzion.

A few weeks ago, I had some free time and decided to walk in. I must say that I was shocked. Even though the bus station is relatively new, it looked like a dump.

Not even the clock works! A bus station should have clocks, working clocks, all over, in every direction.

And this electric board that used to give me information about buses to all over the country is dead. How could there be no basic maintenance in a building as important as the Jerusalem Central Bus Station?

Do you see the "No Signal" sign?

In its heyday, when all the platforms were being used by a number of lines, the area on the right of this picture would have been lit up with information about the schedules. Now it's dark.

Fewer bus lines means fewer passenger which means fewer customers for the stores meaning that it gets harder to rent them out.

The CBS as the signs call it, looked dark and dreary. Maybe it has no future...

Millions of Israelis Forced to Hitchhike or Stay Home-- Bus Drivers Striking!

The Egged bus company, Israel's largest, has been playing a trick to save itself lots of money. It started a "new company" called Egged Taavura with buses painted a bit differently and drivers paid a lot less. In my neck of the woods, Shiloh, north of Jerusalem in Samaria, they also made major changes in our bus routes by taking all of the Egged Taavura buses out of the Jerusalem Central Bus Station and even having our "Jerusalem stop" in the most northernmost neighborhood of Pisgat Zeev. It also means that we must wait on a street for the bus, rather than in a protected building, even during rain, storms and terrible heat.

We, the passengers, now have to take multiple buses to get to most anyplace, and the drivers have lost their hub, where they could easily get some food between runs and do something as mundane as use a toilet.

“Due to the poor conditions the company finds it difficult to recruit drivers and the existing staff is cracking under the strain,” he added. 

The company’s management has not yet issued a response.

The full list of lines scheduled to be on strike is as follows: 

• Intracity lines within: the Netanya area, the Ashdod area, the Ashkelon area, the Elad area, the Shfirim area, and the northern Negev;
• Service from Ashkelon to Be’er Sheva, Ashkelon to Kiryat Gat, and Ashkelon to Ofakim;
• Service between Jerusalem and Mevaseret, Jerusalem and Givat Ze’ev, Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim, Jerusalem and the Binyamin region of Samaria, Jerusalem and the remainder of Samaria, Modi’in and the Binyamin region, and the “fast lines” from Modi’in to Jerusalem – lines 100, 101, 102; and
• Internal lines within Samaria. 

The only ones happy are Egged! They claim they've done if for our benefit, since at least on paper, we have more frequent buses.

Although there have been threats of passenger strikes, we bus travelers are too dependent on public transportation to actually do it, but the drivers are angry enough to stay home, and today is supposed to be the beginning of a two day strike!

Some people who generally take buses do have cars they can use, but there are those like myself and my husband who don't. And even if we did have a car, we have very different schedules. 

I must go to Jerusalem this morning. So I'm finishing this post right now and pray that I will make my appointment on time and get there and back home safely.

Busy Jerusalem Street

Please excuse the bad photography; I'm new at it.
*At the moment there's something wrong with the video, so I'm trying again.



Here's the street near the "CBS," Jerusalem Central Bus Station, the day before the Eve of the Succot Holiday. Maybe you know someone who was hurrying and scurrying at the time and can recognize the person, or people, in the scene. If you send around this, maybe we'll discover who the people are.

My friend and I had just had a very exhausting time and were on our way home.

We take buses, and sometimes cabs. Of course there are Israelis who never do. They only travel in cars. It's sort of like, but not the same as the computer/internet have and have nots.

I'm always annoyed when people use the word "everyone," because there is no such thing.