Taxis threaten indefinite strike in Barcelona

Taxi unions in Barcelona have threatened an indefinite strike after Spain’s High Court in Catalonia announced on Friday that it was maintaining the suspension of local regulation that limited the number of licenses for car-hailing services—a decision that taxi drivers claim puts in danger their jobs. 

Barcelona shut down 

Hundreds of taxis shut down one of the main roads in Barcelona, Gran Via, in an action called during a re-kindled strike on July 27, moving northward. This, after Spain's High Court in Catalonia ruling to maintain the suspension of the regulation limiting the number of licenses for car-hailing services such as Uber and Cabify. 

As a response, Elite Taxi union called for an “immediate stoppage” of activity in the Barcelona metropolitan area until “further notice" on July 27. This, following a 48-hour taxi driver strike that had ended hours before. 

“We do not assume responsibility for any act that could happen in our streets, instead placing responsibility on the Ministry of Public Works and its minister,” informed Elite Taxi through a statement. 

A meeting with the mayor

The stoppage was projected to go at a minimum until the end of the meeting set between taxi drivers and Barcelona mayor Ada Colau at 18h, which was called urgently at the City Council.

As a response to the court decision earlier in the day, Colau had criticized the ruling, saying that it was "very bad news." The mayor further stated that the choice would have the effect of "lengthening the conflict in an absolutely unnecessary way." 

Uber and Cabify had stopped services

The taxi strike began on July 25, set to last for 48 hours. During the two-day strike, taxi drivers protested in the heart of Barcelona as well as driving in a slow procession from the airport. Some 2,000 taxi drivers participated. 

During the strike, Uber and Cabify cars became the targets of aggressions. One of the most serious incidents involved more than a dozen strikers kicking and hitting a car carrying a family of French tourists. Inasmuch, the private companies temporarily suspended their services for safety reasons. 

Unauto, an association representing ride-hailing companies in Spain, said that the suspension of services by Uber and Cabify should be “a matter of reflection,” and accused the city council of Barcelona and the Spanish government of “giving in to blackmail.”

Uber and Cabify resumed their services once the taxi strike ended on the morning of July 27, before it was once again called into effect.