Taxi drivers from the North accuse Palma airport taxi drivers of abandoning Ciutat and charging in Forana
The president of CAEB taxi drivers denies “fraudulent services”.
Taxi drivers from the north of Mallorca accuse Palma taxi drivers of leaving Ciutat de Mallorca out of supply to go and load in the Part Forana. The president of the Pollença taxi drivers, Víctor Llompart, recalls the historic conflict that for years pitted taxi drivers from Ciutat and Part Forana against each other over journeys to Palma airport. “Now they leave Palma with customers waiting and they go to load up the Part Forana; in Sóller they were given permission on an afternoon of collapse and now they arrive like wasps”, he says.
He recalls the historic confrontation between the taxi drivers of Ciutat and Part Forana which “is being rekindled” this season in the midst of the taxi shortage crisis. At its worst, more than a decade ago, there were violent scenes at Palma airport, where taxi drivers from the Part Forana recall that “they threw stones at us to stop us from loading”. Taxi drivers in the north of Mallorca are asking the Balearic government for more vigilance and controls to prevent “fraudulent contracts”.
For his part, the president of the taxi employers’ association (CAEB), Toni Bauzá, categorically denies the accusations. “Many lies are being told. At most we have done 10 or 12 services in the Part Forana throughout the summer, always calling before the associations of the municipalities,” he says. He assures us that “this August has been calm again and we don’t work outside Palma unless under contract”. It’s not us, no one has loaded at any stop outside Palma and when we make a trip from the airport we return empty, we don’t take users even if they raise their hands, we respect the agreements”, he concludes.