Israel's traffic jams are back, and worse than ever Because of Covid-19, the public is forgoing public transport in favor of private cars. Infrastructure projects just can't catch up. As they head west each morning on Highway 471, (commonly called Maccabit Road), Israel's drivers already know that, when planning travel time, they must take into account the dispiriting crawl through the section between the two exits west of Petah Tikva - Givat Shmuel and Bar Ilan - to Highway 4 (Geha Road). After that, to the delight of those heading south, the bottleneck usually turns into mere congestion, wh...