The plenary session of the Calpe Town Council has approved the taxi service regulation by-law, a rule highly demanded by the sector in the municipality since the previous legislation dated back to 1996. The new by-law is adapted to the Taxi Law of the Generalitat Valenciana of 2017 and one of its main novelties is that it regulates for the first time the transfers of taxi authorisations in addition to the training tests for obtaining the licence and contemplates, among other aspects, a broad regime of penalties, as also established by the regional law.
The regulation has been agreed with the Assembly of the Calpe Radio Taxi Association and also includes one of their requests, which is that taxi drivers must wear appropriate clothing (shorts and torn trousers are prohibited). It has also been agreed that taxis must carry a corporate image on their doors consisting of a part of the Penyal d'Ifac in green with the taxi number and the name of the municipality.
The by-law has been approved with the votes in favour of the government team (Somos Calpe, Psoe and Compromís) and Defend Calpe with the PP abstaining.
The councillor for public safety and mobility, Guillermo Sendra, stressed the importance of renewing and updating an by-law such as this, which responds to the needs and requests of the sector. He added that it includes new features that benefit both licence holders and the users themselves, such as "much more demanding training tests, which aim to ensure that new taxi drivers have special empathy and preparation for people with limited abilities", as knowledge of sign language is valued, as well as training in the treatment and care of this type of group.
The spokesman for Defend Calpe, Paco Quiles, expressed his support for this by-law and raised the problem that a tourist town like Calpe has in relation to the number of taxis, which is limited by law according to its registered population, set at 25, and which is insufficient in high season.
On behalf of the PP municipal group, Francisco Fernández de Ybarra pointed out that updating the taxi regulations was "positive" although he indicated that: "the service itself, given the characteristics of Calpe as a tourist town, is complicated and systems should be devised by the Town Hall, working hand in hand with the group to improve the service in both high and low season". "This service is of vital importance for the image and feeling that visitors take away from the town," he added.
Ximo Perles, as spokesman for Compromís, expressed his displeasure regarding the model for the concession of taxi authorisations provided for in the regional law and which must necessarily be applied by municipal by-law. "I don't like the model in which administrative licences are granted for an indefinite period of time and end up being traded; it is not the model that I like the most", and he indicated his preference for the competition-opposition system established for the concessions of notaries and land registries. However, he indicated that his aim was not to question the by-law which has to be adapted to the law of the Generalitat.
The mayoress, Ana Sala, reiterated the limitations of the local councils due to the supra-municipal regulations to which municipal legislation has to be adapted and pointed out that with the approval of this by-law, the taxi service fares are also updated, a request also demanded by the sector.
Settlement of the general budget
In the plenary session, the mayor's decree approving the liquidation of the general budget for 2023 was presented, which resulted in a cash surplus of 12,737,405.49 euros, which will subsequently be incorporated into the municipal budget and which will allow new investments to be made in the municipality.
Trade Vaucher
On the other hand, the plenary initially approved the regulatory bases of the aid for trade-voucher 2024 campaign, which will amount to a total of 500,000 euros and will be developed in two phases, in May and November. As a novelty, it will be possible to purchase vouchers for a maximum nominal value of up to 150 euros (previously the maximum was 100 euros), half of which will be subsidised by the City Council.
This campaign aims to encourage consumption in local shops.
Justice of the Peace
In the plenary session it was unanimously approved to propose Hipólito Moreno Fernández as the new Justice of the Peace in Calpe and Nayara Fernández Ortiz as a substitute to the Governing Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community