Yom Kippur in Israel is an especially holy day, recognized as such by religious and most non-religious as well. Even if the non-religious do not keep all the rules of Yom Kippur, they still recognize the uniqueness of the day. Businesses are not open. People are generally not eating in public (even the non-religious overwhelmingly fast, but those who do not are generally not eating in public). The roads are almost completely empty from cars.

The roads are almost completely empty from cars, but not from bicycles. Yom Kippur has become known as the day of bicycle riding. Stores even introduce massive sales on bicycles in the days leading up to Yom Kippur, in the hope to snag some holiday-related business.

Ron Huldai, the mayor of Tel Aviv, mentioned that the program operating throughout Tel Aviv, tel Ofen, would continue to operate on Yom Kippur as well.

Tel Ofen is the program by which there are bicycle rental stations spread throughout Tel Aviv, allowing people to rent a bike for a few hours or the day, cross town and do whatever eeds to be done, and then return the bike at his nearest tel ofen station. I know people who use this regularly to get to work when they get off the train - they rent a bike and ride to work, returning the bike at the Tel Ofen station closest to the office.

Ron Hulkdai's statement understandably made a splash. It sounded like Huldai was promising that the bike rental business would be in operation on Yom Kippur so people could ride around town. That upset many people, including the Minister of Transportation.

I do not know if the Minister f Transportation's protest was out of concern of coalition partners, or if his protest was based completely out of his own concerns. the way it went down makes me think it was his own.

Yisrael Katz, Minister of Transportation, immediately threatened Huldai with cancellation of the entire program, or at least all government funding of it. Katz said that if Huldai goes through with his promise to keep it open on Yom Kippur would be especially damaging to the holiest symbol of the State of Israel.

Katz said that Tel Ofen is an important project, and has thus been supported in a massive way by the government, with the paving of special bike paths, with the passage of laws to make the program easier to succeed, etc. but if Huldai will harm the holiest day to jews, his office will completely cut all funding and support of the program.

That is a pretty strong response from the minister. I am impressed.

Huldai responded that he was misunderstood, and the Minister should check the facts before making public statements. Huldai claimed he had no plans to run the program of Tel Ofen on Yom Kippur. What he claims to have planned is that people would be able to rent the bikes before Yom Kippur for the entire holiday, and return them after Yom Kippur, as in previous years. The only difference this year is that people with yearly subscriptions to the program will be able to do so at no extra charge (usually the program is for same day rentals and returns, and in this case it would run into the next day).

Is that really what Huldai meant originally, or is he just caving to Katz's threats? I don't know, but it really does not matter. I am happy everyone is on the same page and the rental stands will not be open on Yom Kippur. Not just to avert a crisis that might cause the scrapping of a good program, but because with all businesses claosed on Yom Kippur, it  would be a shame to start breaching that with the opening of the rentals.
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