"We must ask ourselves – what does a person who can't afford to buy a car and wants to visit his family or go to the beach do?" They spend a few shekels and take either a sharoot or taxi to the beach, or walk. I've done it a number of times. TA is small, not like a big expense.

The buses should run, stores should be open, people can rest from work in whichever way they like. If someone gets offended, we will give him/her a hug to make them feel better. Like in America. Really, I do not understand what is the problem?

ride buses on Shabbes. But it's about time these foggy-brained neurotics stopped dictating the entire nation what and when to do. For a group of people with no proof whatsoever for the creed they ram down our throats, it takes a special hutzpa, to deny the sane majority one of basic amenities of modern society. Let them ride donkeys in the desert for all I care....

on shabath is it in the rest of the world , A normal day . and on a Sunday there are in a lot of country's also NO auto-bus. and about the pollution,,! that the people dont take the car is wish full thinking and B,S. Tel Aviv is to expensive for the people who don't can afford a car anyway .

Long ago, in western cities, it was a crime to operate public transport, open art galleries or trade on Sundays. Once they started to allow just one exception, another would come up. Now, Sundays are busy days in western cities. Say, yell, scream NO to public transport on shabbat if you wish to avoid the same horrible fate.

sherutim to get to Nahariyya. I only pray that Megiddo provides a bus again given the lack of a train line.

The secular ought enact ecological compromised as long as Pikuach Nefesh is not compromised

and the SHabbat in Israel is a cultural issue. Even people who do not keep shabbat refuse to work on shabbat. If you open stores ect on shabbat you will end up forcing people to work on the holy day. And that is not cool. Besides those who live in tel Aviv can go to the beach without busses. Its the people in other cities who have a problem. This is a culture war, not a necessity war.

If I want to open up a business in Israel and do not want to hire crapy worthless workers but rather offer positions to contract laborers you and you ilk will crap in your pants over my personal decision. You will demand that I cowtow to your self-destructive socialist dictates...ect. That is the problem in Israel. The government's dirty fingers is in everything. So if you want busses on sabes allow private companies to run busses. The Egged will no longer run busses to the "perifeiya" like Bat Yam. And people will not have busses to the shithole called Eilat and all the Tel Avivians will cry "but but but!!!!" so you can't have it both ways. I for one would rather busses on sabes, but no socialized anything. Let the smokers pay for their own health benefits.

And are not meant to be, we Jews are different, we should accept it and take pride of it and not imitate the other nations. Shabat is the HOLY day of rest for G-d chosen people, it is Israel and not America, England or Japan! Everytime the Jews try to assimilate and become like other nations they are punished. NO to public transportation on Shabat and improve public transportation during the week which is a nightmare with no late bus at night!

This is NOT America. Stay out of our business

Having bus lines run on Shabbat, is controversial. So many of life's decisions are. But, weighing the pro's and con's, is how we as adults make such decisions. The needs of the many who will benefit from Shabbat bus service, outway the objections of the few. Though I suspect the "few" will make a lot of noise!

Israel is a jewish state as declared at the United nation in 1947. Therefore we should not be like any other nation. That is what makes us special and eternal. To Mea & Michael if you do not nderstand that you should not live in Israel. Shabbat is a very social institution. Thanks to shabbat we can "regenerate" and it is also a way to prevent a gross abuse of human right by preventing the implementing of economic rules that would alienate people to work. On the contrary the shabbat institution shall allow the people to be liberated from the notion of work and have an inalienable right to rest .

doesn't disturb fanatics. I am beginning to believe that those who are complaining of late, are making an issue as just a reason to argue.

Israel is not a state run according to jewish law. The majority of residents in Tel Aviv are secular. It is not appropriate that the religious minority dictate to others what we can and cannot do based on their religious beliefs which we do not share. So spare us the lectures about day of rest and what is good for us, its not your concern.

What's the problem? Mind on your own business! Enough is enough! We are a JEWISH State is it hard to understand? You have no respect for other cultures have you?

why should the majority of Jews in Israel be forced to comply with a fringe group representing less than 15% of World Jewry, who base their medival beliefs in superstitious nonesense!? In any case, if the Orthodox don't want buses running on Shabbat- then don't ride them! Aside from that, think about how many lives can be saved from drunk drivers on Friday night, not to mention the removal of cars from the roads as a result of people using public transportation on Shabbat!

yeah, it will divide them into the people that take the bus and the people that don't take the bus. From a business standpoint I'm sure they will make more money.

to visit and go to the beach. And let us keep Shabat to relax completely,to be together with our partner and our children, enjoying them infinitely. Instead of being stucked hours in a horrendous trafic. We should appreciate Shabat,the wonderful present G-D gave to the world,one restday every week for everybody, boss and employees equally . To those who want shops open ,and busses riding on Shabat,don t you mind, that somebody has to work on your restday? By keeping Shabat the Tora way .we get an oasis of peace and joy,week after week, in the middle of a stressful life.

I am starting to understand how many Jews do not believe in G-D

They do it voluntarely , and receive a better pay for the same job . Taking a sherout ? or a taxi ? those drivers work too ! And ask higher fares . An oasis of peace ? many want to spend this day at the beach , enjoy the sun and the sea . The best remedy against stress , to enjoy your rest day . Having sunday as rest day ? and when will people work ? Of course , working is not a charidi problem , they don't do it .

And working only four days a week ? Schools have already many days off , you want another one ? Yes i know , working is not a problem for charidim , most of them don't do it , never .

People who work on shabbat receive a better salary , important for some , and another rest day .

It is too bad that a vocal minority is trying to destroy a day of rest. There was a time in North America Everything closed on Sundays and Holidays. Now everyone is racing 7 days a week. Secular mouthpieces have destroyed much~we must prevent them from destroying this.

Did you all ever think that they have families, kids. Maybe they dont want to work on Shabbat to be home with their families. We dont have to be like America. They revoked the blue laws and shopped 7 days a week and lost sight of real values. They shopped so much they broke the economy with too much debt.

Duh! Take a cab, ride a bike

I guess you don't work on Shabbat, or if you do, work for the electric company to get the 200% bonus. Why is it the people "who receive a better salary and rest another day" to work on Shabbat are always the poor Russians, Ethiopians and Arabs and never the Leftist Tel-Avivians who demand that everyone be their slave.

Ron Huldai's a joke. Corruption is rampant in Tel Aviv (look at the high rise blocks going up around you) and public transport during the week is pretty awful. Who is Huldai to talk about public transport - doesn't the city pay for a chauffer driven car for the man? I f people want to go by public transport on Shabbat, there's a great network of Sheruts.

We have had the haredi extremists trying to Judaize everything and now we have Tel Aviv wanting to wipe out all reminders Israel is supposed to be a Jewish state by running public transport on Saturday. It starts with Tel Aviv then it moves to other towns & cities and even Jerusalem. Then the stores will start opening on Shabbat as travel is not a problem for anybody anymore. Pretty soon there is nothing left to say there " Jewish state " Whatever the demand for busses on Saturday its the start of a slippery slope and its also going to lead to an increase in secular v religious