"Faulty and disgraceful": The owners of bus companies Tnufa and Extra have been summoned to a hearing at the Public Transportation Authority.

The Ministry of Transportation has summoned bus companies Extra and Tnufa for an urgent hearing before canceling contracts following the collapse of the service in Jerusalem. Data reveals a surge in trip cancellations, and the State is threatening to transfer the lines to other operators

The Ministry of Transportation sent an unusual and dramatic signal to the two largest transportation operators in the Jerusalem area, Extra and Tnufa, due to a "significant and severe decline in the level of service," which is defined as a fundamental violation of the agreements. Idan Mualem, Director of the Public Transportation Authority at the Ministry of Transportation, said "the state will no longer be satisfied with empty warnings but will take strong action against the ongoing failures.

Mualem sent Tnufa CEO Nitzan Aryeh a summons for a hearing. This was after the average non-arrival accuracy of the company's buses in 2025 reached 2.5%, while in December 2025 the rate even rose to 3.5%. The request stated that this rate is a violation of the agreement that prohibits the rate of non-performance of trips from exceeding 2.5% and the rate of delays from exceeding 6%. Every  percentage means thousands of buses that did not set off, leaving tens of thousands of passengers waiting in vain at the bus stops.

The Ministry of Transportation sees this as a systemic failure that requires rapid surgical intervention, and it seems that there will be no escape from transferring at least some of the lines to another operator who can meet its obligations to the public.

There is currently much instability in the field, and the challenges faced by bus drivers should be noted. The industry suffers from a shortage of about 5,000 drivers. Also, recent data revealed that 54% of drivers had been physically assaulted and 77% of drivers had experienced verbal violence.