Barcelona taxi drivers to protest European ruling

The taxi drivers of Barcelona will demonstrate on Wednesday 14 June against the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) which considers that the regulation of the Metropolitan Area of ​​Barcelona (AMB) that limits authorisations to transport vehicles with drivers (VTC) to one for every 30 taxis is contrary to European law.

The spokesperson for Elite Taxi, Tito Álvarez, stated “There will be no peace until this conflict is resolved.”

Álvarez has said that the march on Wednesday will begin around 9 am in the Venetian Towers of Plaza Espanya. From there, the taxi drivers, who will demonstrate with their vehicles, will go to the Government Delegation -on calle Mallorca-, where they will arrive on foot after parking on Gran Via.

With the protest, they intend to demand that the Minister of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez, that her ministry take “letters in the matter”, “end this nightmare once and for all” and give “powers to the town halls” so that they can limit the VTC. And it is that, according to Álvarez, the CJEU ruling, which was made public last week, has a positive aspect, because it “opens the door to the channel” so that the consistories can restrict them “for reasons of traffic congestion, environmental quality, occupation of public space and road safety”.

Álvarez, in addition, has indicated that the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union “does not affect” the decree law of the Generalitat approved a few months ago that regulates transport vehicles with drivers. “Only the Constitutional Court can knock it down,” he assured.

On the other hand, the spokesman for Elite Taxi has asked Minister Sánchez “to protect all taxi drivers from outside the metropolitan area, because the VTCs can do interurban transport and, if the Ministry does not remedy it and restrict it, there may be an invasion”.

The AMB rule that limits VTC licences to one for every 30 taxis came to court after the company Prestige and Limousine, holder of authorisations for VTC services in the metropolitan area, challenged it before the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC). The chauffeur-driven transport companies argued that the restrictions imposed by the regulation are intended to hinder the activity and protect the interests of the taxi sector.

Given the doubts when analysing the case, the TSJC raised it with a preliminary question to the CJEU, in which it questioned whether the rule complies with European competition regulations.

The Deputy Mayor for Urban Planning and Mobility of Barcelona, ​​Janet Sanz, stated this Thursday that the CJEU ruling “clarifies” the regulations and the work done by the administrations in recent years.

“It helps us to clarify what is the legal framework on which we can work, develop and operate these necessary regulations to guarantee the functioning of the city”, she has valued.

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