Ben Pawlowski
TAXI drivers in Barcelona are set to go on strike next Tuesday as simmering tensions in the sector come to the boil.
The protest, which has been called by the STAC, ATC, Paktaxi, Anger and Elite Taxi trade unions, will see cab drivers attempt to ‘blockade’ areas of the city next Tuesday, June 18, from 6am to 6pm.
They are calling for immediate government intervention to help protect the sector against the ‘abuses’ of insurance companies.
Protestors are also asking the Metropolitan Taxi Institute (IMET), the autonomous body which manages urban taxis and ride-hailing services (VTCs) in the metropolitan area of Barcelona, to implement ‘dignified’ tariffs.
They believe that ride-hailing services, such as Uber, Bolt or Cabify, are contributing to stagnating wages and represent ‘unfair competition’ by monopolising the industry.
Last month, hundreds of taxi drivers organised a slow march through Barcelona which ‘paralysed’ traffic in protest against ride-hailing services, with trade union leaders warning that VTCs must ‘operate legally, or there will be no peace in Barcelona’.
The unions have also warned that Tuesday’s protest will not be the last, with plans to introduce ‘blockades’ at key points throughout the city, including the port, El-Prat airport, and Sants train station, all of which are key hubs for transport and trade.
The spokesperson for the Catalan government, Patricia Plaja, has sought to reassure taxi drivers by pledging to introduce a new law during the next parliament which will make co-existence of taxis and VTCs possible, and will incorporate ‘most of the measures the taxi drivers are demanding’.
“The government worked for months with all parties involved on a new law, it was almost done and would have been approved in June if it wasn’t for the snap election’, she said last month.
