Gridlock in Madrid

04/03/2010

Sadly the effects of deregulation are being felt around the world, not just here in the UK.

In Madrid, the situation quite literally reached standstill as thousands of taxi drivers blocked main roads across the Spanish capital and other major cities in protest at moves to deregulate the cab industry.

The one day cab strike, heeded by an estimated 90% of taxi drivers nationwide, is said to have been the biggest ever by Spanish cabbies.

The action was taken by taxi drivers in response to the Government’s plan to open up taxi services to mini-cab style cars that wouldn’t have to follow the same legal controls as mainstream taxis.

So disgruntled are the cabbies by the prospect of a huge upsurge in competition for fares that they have demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, saying that taxi deregulation would destroy the livelihoods of 70,000 cab drivers.