TRAINS, PLANES AND AUTOMOBILES THIS WEEK

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Budget airline Ryanair has withdrawn a number of routes again this week, without the bells and whistles normally accompanies by them launching new routes at the same time. A number of domestic Spanish flights are affected, including between Zaragoza and Tenerife and Seville; Barcelona and Alicante; Bilbao and Asturias; Bilbao and Madrid and Seville; Madrid and Asturias as well as other routes from Leeds, London and Montpellier.

The European motoring association, AEA, has expressed “great concern” about the high percentage of drivers killed on the roads who tested positive for alcohol or drugs. According to data provided by the National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences, alcohol or drugs is present in 47.3% of all fatal drivers, and has proposed routine mandatory medical tests to detect drug abuse during examinations to obtain or renew a driver’s license. According to the latest annual survey on drug use, published by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, Spain has a higher than average use of drugs, mainly cannabis and cocaine. While the average consumption of cannabis in Europe in 2011 stood at 6.8% of the population, the rate in Spain was 10.6%, whereas with regard to cocaine, while the European average was at 1.2%, in Spain the figure stood at 2.7%.

The Spanish government has announced an increase to road tax next year, the Impuesto sobre Vehículos de Tracción, with older and higher polluting vehicles paying more than their eco-friendly equivalents. Road tax will be linked to emissions of CO2, NOx and particulates. The calculation of the tax rate is set according to the different European regulations on vehicle emissions, and does not take into account social arguments. The reform will be made by the Directorate General of Taxes, Ministry of Finance and determined in agreement with the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces.

The number of passengers who chose to fly domestically around Spain fell by 17.8% in February, whilst rail passengers also declined by 2.7%, as reported by the Institute of Statistics. In total, more than 102.6 million passengers used intercity transport in the second month of the year, down 3.3%, with declines in all types of transport. In the case of the train, the drop in passenger volume was greater in mid-range journeys, down 6.9%, while in long distance trains, including the AVE high speed train, remained stable. In addition, passengers on commuter trains fell 2.6%.

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