Nov 10, 2010

WIFI access on Egged bus lines, not for Haredim

Egged has decided to expand it's program of installing free WIFI access on intercity bus lines. Until now Egged ran a pilot program in which it had WIFI service on a limited number of bus lines. They have now decided to expand the program and bump the number up to a third of the Egged fleet (of intercity lines).


I have no idea how they will determine which lines are haredi and which are not. When they say "haredi bus lines" do they mean only mehadrin bus lines? maybe any bus entering or exiting a haredi city/neighborhood that is frequented by haredim?

I asked Egged for more information as to how it will be determined which line is considered haredi that will not get WIFI access. If they respond I will post it here.

Just to mention, when they started the pilot, it did not take a rocket scientist to realize that this would eventually become a problem.
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8 comments:

  1. yoni r.November 10, 2010 2:58 PM

    I wholeheartedly agree with your classification of yourself as "not a rocket scientist".

    :)

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  2. Rafi G.November 10, 2010 3:13 PM

    I always knew we would eventually agree on something!

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  3. ehwhyNovember 10, 2010 5:26 PM

    They will let the insurance company determine which lines will be considered Haredi. If they think the windows will be broken then it is a Haredi line.

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  4. Michael LipkinNovember 10, 2010 5:31 PM

    Um, if one is not supposed to have anything that receives WiFi, why should it even be an issue?

    OTOH from the perspective of whoever is funding this it might make fiscal sense not to spend the money outfitting buses which won't be utilized.

    Of the problem will be on a bus like our own 417. I guess we'll soon find out if it has payos or not. :)

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  5. Yerachmiel LopinNovember 10, 2010 7:18 PM

    I hate the idea. Egged is helping the chareidi establishment block people from getting to the internet. We have already abandoned their children to occupational illiteracy.

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  6. AnonymousNovember 10, 2010 9:06 PM

    Menachem in theory the Haredim don't want their seatmates browsing in front of them. Sort of like the movies on the airplane.

    Yerachmiel you make it sound like some personal right to have wifi access on the bus without having paid for it. While I also wish the Haredi approach wasn't quite so intrusive to everyone else, it isn't like they're coming to your home and preventing you from accessing the internet however you want.

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  7. Michael LipkinNovember 10, 2010 9:48 PM

    Menachem in theory the Haredim don't want their seatmates browsing in front of them. Sort of like the movies on the airplane.

    Pretty much sums up the problem with the fundamentalist mentality.

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  8. bohr salinoNovember 11, 2010 1:49 PM

    Did you notice that the article in Bechadrei claims that this measure is discriminative

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