Very little disruption reported during first day of transport strike in Spain

The first day of a transport strike in Spain has seen very little disruption reported across the country

An indefinite strike by the minority Platform in Defense of the National and International Road Freight Transport Sector has started today, Monday, March 14, with very little incidence reported at the national level. Some isolated and intermittent roadblocks did occur in different parts of the country.

The convening Platform, one without representation in the transport sector’s dialogue with the Government – the National Committee for Road Transport – announced its strike for this Monday in protest at high fuel prices, an action that is not supported by the majority of transport associations in Spain.

Manuel Hernandez, the platform’s president, in a statement to EFE, assured that from his monitoring of the strike by the carriers of Lugo, it appears to be “very good”.

The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) indicated that the transport stoppages are not causing notable incidents, although they have detected informative pickets, for which alternative routes have been established.

Sources from the Traffic Information Service have specified that three road sections have been affected: on the A6, in Lugo towards Madrid, there was a closed lane; on the N640, also in Lugo, in the municipality of A Campiña, there were delays, and on the A27 in Tarragona, towards the port, there was a traffic jam for one kilometre.

In Madrid, there have been no notable incidents, beyond some informative pickets in areas such as Mercamadrid. Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida, the mayor of the capital, confirmed that there have been no complications, and has ruled out that there may be shortages.

In the Valencian Community, no significant incidents were either. One of the spokespersons for the convening platform, Alvaro Ortiz, president of the Port Transport Association of the Valencian Community (Asotraport), told EFE that the strike reached 85 per cent of the capacity, and has affected activity in the terminals from the Port of Valencia.

The transport strike has not stopped activity in Andalucia, although there were some informative pickets in industrial estates. According to sources in the sector, early in the morning, there were intermittent traffic cuts in the Jaen municipality of Bailen.

Transport employers in the Balearic Islands did not support the strike, but in the morning more than a hundred lorries drove along one of the Palma motorways and caused traffic jams at the time of greatest traffic.

The Spanish Confederation of Freight Transport (CETM) – the largest of the associations – understands that “this is not the time” to support a transport strike, and even less so if it is indefinite, and “without clear objectives”, because “it will only serve to further destabilise the complicated situation.

It called for “immediate” action from the Government to limit fuel prices for road freight transport for the duration of the current situation, which has caused a 20 per cent increase in fuel prices.

Since the end of January, diesel has risen 30.4 per cent, reaching €1.80/litre last Friday 11, although at some petrol stations it already exceeds two euros per litre.

Filling the tank of an international truck, which usually has a capacity of 1,500 litres, costs €2,700 today, compared to €2,070 at the end of January. This figure could exceed €3,000 in the coming days with the more than foreseeable escalation of prices, as reported by diariodesevilla.es.

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Written by

Chris King

Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com

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