A blow to public transport passengers: a new fine of 250 shekels
Passengers on bus line 618 from Jerusalem to Beit Shemesh were surprised today when police officers boarded for an inspection, which resulted in 26 fines being issued. The reason: failure to wear seat belts – while some passengers claimed that the seat belts on the bus were not functional.
An unusual enforcement event took place today, Monday, on line 618, which was making its way from Jerusalem to Beit Shemesh. Two traffic volunteers from the Jerusalem police station stopped the bus and conducted an inspection among the passengers.
At the end of the inspection, no fewer than 26 fines were issued for failure to wear seat belts. The amount of the fine given to each passenger stands at 250 shekels.
This is enforcement that is not a routine matter on buses of this type. According to reports, one of the volunteers who carried out the enforcement, with the rank of Chief Inspector (Ravpak), was acting within the framework of his volunteer activity in the police. Some of the passengers claimed after receiving the fines that the seat belts in some of the seats were not functional, and therefore it was not possible to use them properly.
And what does the law say? According to the rules, when a seat belt is installed in a seat, there is an obligation to fasten it during the trip. On the other hand, in buses where belts were not installed originally, there is no requirement to install them retroactively.
In the case of line 618, 26 passengers received fines of 250 shekels each – for a total amount of 6,500 shekels.
