2023-06-27 16:48:13
The Spanish government on Tuesday adopted a new law allowing its regions to restrict the activities of ridesharing platforms such as Uber and Bolt, following the European judiciary ruled in favor of them in a lawsuit filed once morest the authorities in Barcelona, reports Archyde.com.
Bolt versus UberFoto: Dreamstime.com
The associations representing drivers working for these companies, as well as local rivals from Cabify, have already announced that they will challenge the decision in Brussels and are asking the European Commission to open legal proceedings once morest Spain.
“We regret that the objective is to impose limits on businesses and not to ensure the right of users to benefit from quality services,” Bolt said in a press release.
Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s cabinet passed a decree on Tuesday that allows regional authorities to force company drivers to meet additional criteria in order to operate in certain areas, Economy Minister Nadia Calvino announced.
However, the decree stipulates that these criteria will in turn have to be justified by virtue of considerations that may relate to environmental protection, road safety or the interests of “public interest services” such as traditional taxi companies.
The Spanish government insists it is not breaking European law with new restrictions on ridesharing platforms
The last stated point, however, contradicts a recent decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union that invalidated restrictions imposed in Barcelona, accuse Feneval and Unauto, two of the associations that represent drivers and fleet owners.
The judgment published on June 8 by the European court established that the restrictions imposed by the authorities in Barcelona with the aim of reducing the number of cars that transport passengers privately via mobile platforms violate EU law because they discriminate between service providers.
The Spanish transport ministry, however, says the new legislation respects the court’s decision, insisting that protecting taxi drivers is in the interest of the general public.
The implementation of the restrictions in Barcelona towards the end of last year forced many drivers to give up their activity, who hailed the decision of the EU Court of Justice as one that legitimized them as public transport operators.
Pedro Sanchez’s government adopted the new decree less than a month before early parliamentary elections he summoned them for July 23, following a stinging defeat suffered in the regional elections at the end of May.
PHOTO article: Collage dreamstime.com.
1687883221
#Spanish #government #measures #ridesharing #platforms #Bolt #Uber #parliamentary #elections
