Now Barcelona taxis go on strike too
Dozens of taxis in Barcelona started an indefinite strike on Friday, blocking a major thoroughfare in protest against online ride-hailing services like Uber.
The mobilisation comes ahead of a similar work stoppage due to kick off on Monday in Madrid just two days before the Fitur international tourism fair, one of the world's largest, kicks off in the Spanish capital.
"From now, us taxis will go on strike indefinitely in the Gran Via," a street that crosses Barcelona, federation Elite Taxi said in a statement.
On Friday afternoon, dozens of cars were blocking the street that had already been occupied over the summer by taxis in another protest that then spread to other cities.
The strike follows new regulations unveiled Friday by the regional government of Catalonia that force clients to book VTCs (Tourism Vehicles with Chauffeur) like Uber or Cabify at least 15 minutes before the actual time they are needed.
Taxis though argue that VTCs are not a taxi service by law and should therefore be booked 12 to 24 hours ahead of time.
"We want them to differentiate both services and the only way to do so is via pre-booking," Luis Berbel, head of the Taxi Union of Catalonia, told AFP.
"Fifteen minutes is nothing, it's an insult to the sector."
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The mobilisation comes ahead of a similar work stoppage due to kick off on Monday in Madrid just two days before the Fitur international tourism fair, one of the world's largest, kicks off in the Spanish capital.
"From now, us taxis will go on strike indefinitely in the Gran Via," a street that crosses Barcelona, federation Elite Taxi said in a statement.
On Friday afternoon, dozens of cars were blocking the street that had already been occupied over the summer by taxis in another protest that then spread to other cities.
The strike follows new regulations unveiled Friday by the regional government of Catalonia that force clients to book VTCs (Tourism Vehicles with Chauffeur) like Uber or Cabify at least 15 minutes before the actual time they are needed.
Taxis though argue that VTCs are not a taxi service by law and should therefore be booked 12 to 24 hours ahead of time.
"We want them to differentiate both services and the only way to do so is via pre-booking," Luis Berbel, head of the Taxi Union of Catalonia, told AFP.
"Fifteen minutes is nothing, it's an insult to the sector."
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