Israel's train services will not resume operations on June 8 as was reported earlier over coronavirus fears, government officials confirmed Sunday.
Last week Transportation Minister Miri Regev and Health Minister Yuli Edelstein agreed that railway traffic will restart on Monday after three previous delays. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, decided on Sunday to the reverse the decision after another rise in the number of new coronavirus diagnoses has been reported.
The cabinet is set to convene on Monday in order to discuss when the trains will finally restart and under which conditions. So far, no new date for the reopening of Israel Railways has been set.
Among the authorities' main concerns is that it appears to be impossible to impose a restriction on a number of passengers allowed inside each train due to logistical limitations.
"One of the reasons for the increase in the rate of infection in Israel stems from opening up the economy, but another reason is the lack of adherence to the rules," Netanyahu said on Saturday, alluding to Israelis' lax attitude toward abiding by health orders in public spaces.
Regev last week visited Israel Railways control center and apparently already instructed the staff to prepare for full reopening of traffic on upcoming Monday, in accordance with the health guidelines.
"The public expects the return of trains, which will alleviate pressure from the bus systems and allow easy public transport access to Israeli citizens,” said Regev said on Thursday. “We will follow the developments and make sure the public abides by the health rules, maintaining social distancing, wearing masks and preventing the entry of passengers with fever inside train stations.”
In the meantime, the bus system in the country continues to suffer from overcrowding due to a lack of alternative when it comes to public transport.
On Sunday morning, a bus in Jerusalem was seen leaving the station packed to the point that some passengers could not physically fit inside the vehicle.