Newsletter
Newsletter Support JNS

Israel gets its first air-conditioned bus stop

The innovative pilot project saw a water-based air-cooling system installed at a city bus stop located in the central Israeli city of Holon.

The bus stop in the central Israeli city of Holon. Credit: Courtesy, August 18, 2026.
A bus stop in the central Israeli city of Holon featuring a water-based air-cooling system. Credit: Courtesy, August 18, 2026.

The sweltering Middle East summer commute got a bit cooler for some public transportation riders this week after the first air-conditioned bus stop was launched in Israel.

The innovative pilot project saw a water-based air-cooling system installed at a city bus stop located in the central Israeli city of Holon.

The pilot is slated to run all week at the bus stop opposite the city’s mall, and if successful, will be expanded to additional bus stops throughout the city.

The system installed on the roof of the station disperses tiny droplets into the air, absorbing heat through evaporation.

“Waiting for the bus in the sweltering heat is part of daily life for thousands of residents, and we want to change even these seemingly small things that have a significant impact on the quality of life in the city,” said Holon Mayor Shai Kenan.

Etgar Lefkovits, an award-winning international journalist, is an Israel correspondent and a feature news writer for JNS. A native of Chicago, he has two decades of experience in journalism, having served as Jerusalem correspondent in one of the world’s most demanding positions. He is currently based in Tel Aviv.
The White House peace envoy said Washington had only begun understanding what stripping enclave arms required, calling it “beyond your comprehension.”
“Our motto is God first, and Israel always has a special place in our hearts,” Naoero Foreign Minister Lionel Aingimea said.
The Israeli-American Council launched a petition demanding that concert organizers remove the rapper from the tour after his on-stage calls to “Free Palestine.”
Actor and co-creator of the series shared the difficulties in filming abroad in the wake of the Hamas-led massacre and rising antisemitism.