As part of the regulation process of the new Taxi Law Cab Lawtwo periods of public exposure have been opened: the regulation of cab services and the activity of leasing vehicles with driver(VTC) in the Balearic Islands.
This procedure is enabled since yesterday Monday and will run until February 14. As detailed by the Govern, the aim is “toknow the opinion of the citizenship before the drafting of the text because the most representative people and organizations potentially affected by the future regulation can give their opinion and make contributions on the existing problems to be solved, on whether it is necessary and appropriate to approve a new regulation, what objectives it has to have and the possible alternative solutions, regulatory and non-regulatory”. The contributions can be submitted electronically through the Electronic Headquarters, through the form available on the Citizen Participation Portal of the Government, in person at any registration assistance office or by mail by writing to the Directorate General of Mobility of the Ministry of Housing, Territory and Mobility.
The Taxi Law
Approved on February 16 of last year, Law 1/20244, the Law 1/2024 amended Law 4/2014, of June 20, 2014, of land transport and sustainable mobility of the Balearic Islands.
This seeks to establish improvements in the regulation of transport services with vehicles with up to nine seats, in the competitiveness of the cab sector and ensure legal certainty in the provision of these services. However, the lack of regulation has generated a partial application, in addition to administrative patches such as the recent draft decree announced by the Govern to establish a single rate per island, something that Ibiza already has and which is also in the process of public exposure.
Problems detected
In the report of the prior consultation issued by the Government, it is recalled that Law 1/2024 “suspends the granting and processing of procedures pending resolution of ordinary authorizations for leases of vehicles with driver and cab licenses until the approval of the decree of the Government of the Balearic Islands in which the objective criteria for the granting of these authorizations are established, based on improving air quality, transport management, traffic and public space”. In addition, he highlights that, in recent years, the mobility of visitors has changed substantially. “There is a trend towards small groups, with a greater use of so-called minibuses, rental vehicles and public transport, at the same time as the use of fifty-seater buses, which a few years ago were used as a priority for transfers to hotels or for excursions, has decreased.” Also, at certain times and in certain areas, there is road saturation. “With all this, a global study of mobility in the Balearic Islands is being carried out to establish the criteria for granting new authorizations for both cab and VTC to serve both residents and visitors, making them compatible with respect for the environment and with the management of traffic and public space,” he says. As advanced by La Voz de Ibiza, this comprehensive study launched last August seeks to determine the current size of the public service, its quality and make an assessment of the available proportion of passenger transport vehicles. However, the results are not yet known.
What is to be regulated
The Govern has deemed it necessary to draft a regulation that“develops the regulation contained in Sections 1ª, 2ª, 3ª and 4ª of Chapter IV of Title I (articles 47 to 59), and in Section 3ª of Chapter V of Title I (articles 68 to 74) of Law 4/2014, of June 20, on land transport and sustainable mobility of the Balearic Islands, with the amendments of Law 1/2024, of February 16, on improving the regulation of transport services with vehicles with up to nine seats and other applicable regulations”. In general terms, these sections define the scope of application of urban and interurban public transport; the general conditions for its provision; the administrative authorizations required to operate public transport services; the procedures for obtaining licenses, deadlines and specific requirements; the obligations of operators, such as service quality, fares, schedules and user service; inspection and control by the competent authorities; and coordination between administrations and transport planning, among others. It also establishes the conditions for operating discretional transportation services, such as excursions or transfers on demand; the requirements for vehicles; the necessary authorizations and licenses for this type of transportation; competition between operators and the protection of users’ rights.
