Eilat begins clean-up campaign on abandoned cars

By MIRIAM BULWAR DAVID-HAY (TRANSLATED)
The city of Eilat has embarked on a campaign to clear away the hundreds of vehicles and car wrecks left abandoned in local streets, reports www.local.co.il. The city removed 124 such vehicles in the last quarter of 2008, and has removed 196 such vehicles in the first quarter of this year. According to the report, the city decided it was time for the move because of the health and safety hazards posed by the vehicles, as well as being unsightly. The 1984 National Law for the Preservation of Cleanliness entitles local authorities to remove vehicles that have been left in public places for more than 60 days. The report said that in Eilat, the city had decided that even if a vehicle had been left in one place for more than 60 days, it would not act to remove it if the vehicle had a valid roadworthiness sticker ("test"). But if a vehicle did not have a valid roadworthiness sticker or a license plate, the city would track down the owners and order them to remove the vehicle, and if they failed to act, it would be towed away.