Public transportation usage in Israel is down 38.5% as of Thursday compared to the usage before the novel coronavirus outbreak, according to statistics gathered by Moovit, a public transportation application.
In comparison, public transport usage in New York City is down 33.9%, usage in Paris is down 55.4% and usage in London is down 27.2%.
On Thursday night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the government would sign previously announced restrictions into legally enforceable orders, including bans on visiting parks, beaches, pools, libraries and museums. Israelis may only leave their homes when "absolutely necessary," including for essential work, food or medicine.
Under current guidelines, public transport in Israel stops at 8 p.m. every weeknight and is not available from 8 p.m. on Thursday until Sunday morning. Inner city buses run only two to three times an hour depending on the city under the new guidelines.