Tel Aviv to impose fines of up to NIS 1,000 on drivers for excessive honking

The Tel Aviv Municipality is moving ahead with plans to use technology to enforce restrictions on unnecessary honking after Noise won a tender to install and operate the system. Enforcement is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2027.

The system will initially be installed at 11 locations across the city, including the intersection of Bograshov and Tchernichovsky streets and the area around Rabin Square. The sites were selected in consultation with the municipal environmental authority based on pedestrian traffic, each site's central location, the number of residents, major traffic routes, and public complaints. 

An array of microphones will detect honking and pinpoint its source. A video camera will then identify the vehicle using a “sound map.” The data will be sent to a municipal inspector, who will review the circumstances and decide whether to issue a ticket. Fines will be issued to the vehicle’s registered owner, according to Transportation Ministry records.

Private vehicle owners will face fines of NIS 250 for a first offense and NIS 500 for a repeat offense. For corporate vehicle owners, the fines will be NIS 500 for a first offense and NIS 1,000 for a repeat offense.

Deputy Mayor for Transportation and Road Safety Meital Lehavi said that “the horn is a safety device, not a tool for expressing emotions, and traffic jams are not an emergency,” adding that anyone behind the wheel “is not entitled to take over public space.”

Project initially launched decade ago

Lehavi said the project was initiated about a decade ago, but technological advances only made it feasible in recent years. Tel Aviv is launching the system with more monitoring locations than any other city in Israel, she added.

Dr. Davy Dishnik, deputy mayor and chairman of the municipal committee overseeing tenders, said the smart, data-based enforcement system aims to address an everyday nuisance and improve quality of life in the city.

Other Israeli cities already use similar technology. Petah Tikva pioneered the approach in Israel and operates an acoustic camera system that has resulted in about 500 tickets, each carrying a NIS 245 fine. Kiryat Ono uses similar enforcement as part of the “Quiet Cities” project, while Netanya also enforces restrictions on unnecessary honking.

Ramat Gan has announced plans to introduce a similar system, with six cameras planned for major intersections and a higher fine of NIS 730.