Photo Credit: Moshe Shai/Flash 90

New measures to enforce driving rules announced by the Israel Police Traffic Division, the Knesset, and the State Prosecutor’s office this week will mean severe punishments for driving infractions, and a significantly increased likelihood of being caught committing them.

New speed and traffic light cameras will be installed throughout the country as part of the new crackdown.  Additionally, it will become easier for police to revoke drivers’ licenses for prolonged periods and will impose harsher penalties on many driving offenses.

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The traffic cameras can operate in all weather conditions and times of day, and can photograph at a rate of less than a second between pictures, meaning driving breaches can be fined at any time of day or weather, and can capture images of any car on the road at any given time, as well as while turning at intersections.

A report by the Globes online business magazine informed readers that fines will be issued beginning at 10% above the speed limit, with a 31km/h (19.26 mph) rate above the limit resulting in an automatic NIS 750 fine (about $197).

Notices of fines incurred, or traffic court dates set, will be sent to violators in the mail.

A recent report by the State Comptroller’s office noted that 40% of road fatalities in Israel are occur to non-Jewish citizens, primarily Arabs, despite the fact that they are only 20% of the population.  The report blamed human error, road quality in pre-dominantly Arab areas, and the poor condition of the drivers’ cars.

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Malkah Fleisher is a graduate of Cardozo Law School in New York City. She is an editor/staff writer at JewishPress.com and co-hosts a weekly Israeli FM radio show. Malkah lives with her husband and two children on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.