Highway 6 Tolls, Late Fees, and the Profits Fueling Public Outcry
Highway 6 operator Derech Eretz faces scrutiny as Knesset data reveals 47% of casual user bills are paid late, leading to massive debt accumulation and high penalty fees.
Highway 6 has long since become one of the central transportation arteries in Israel, but it has also evolved into a well-oiled financial machine. Millions of Israelis use the toll road, and some find that a bill left unpaid on time can quickly balloon due to charges defined by the company as compensation and expense reimbursement.
Following a report regarding grey-market-scale fines imposed by Derech Eretz, the company operating the highway, dozens of customer complaints poured in describing a similar pattern: accumulated debts, unpaid invoices, and additional fees that significantly inflated the original sum.
Mounting Debts and Missed Payments
In one published case, a registered Highway 6 subscriber logged into their personal account almost by chance to discover a debt of approximately 5,000 ₪ accumulated under their name. An invoice check revealed that about 3,000 ₪ stemmed from the trips themselves, while roughly 2,000 ₪ came from compensation and expense reimbursement charges due to late payment.
According to the customer, the credit card on file had expired, and charges began to pile up. Rather than halting the process quickly to prevent the debt from swelling, the invoices kept coming—along with the additional fees.
Almost half of all invoices sent to casual users are not paid on time, resulting in collection expenses according to data revealed in the Knesset.
Billions in Revenues and Extended Concessions
Data recently revealed in the Knesset's Economics Committee shows that about 47% of invoices sent to casual Highway 6 users are not paid on time. Monthly figures indicate that around 175,000 invoices are sent to casual users, meaning roughly 82,000 remain unpaid monthly, translating to nearly a million unpaid invoices annually.
Derech Eretz is a private company, meaning its full financial data is not publicly available like that of a publicly traded corporation. However, historical data shows massive scale: in 2017, revenues were estimated at 1.35 billion ₪, with net profits reaching 174 million ₪ in the first nine months alone. When the concession was extended in 2022 until 2032, annual revenues were estimated at around 1 billion ₪.
Despite public criticism and questions regarding excessive collection fees compared to actual costs, Derech Eretz continues to operate under its extended mandate, leaving drivers to shoulder the costs and call for greater transparency.
