Los Cabos Authorities Say Taxi Driver Conflicts Are Not Affecting Tourists

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Last Updated 8 months ago

In recent days, Los Cabos’ taxi drivers and tourist transport providers have organized several protests.

These were planned for a number of reasons, ranging from unauthorized taxi drivers offering illegal services to tourists to local inspectors allegedly abusing their powers. 

Despite the many protests, Los Cabos authorities are now saying that taxi drivers’ conflicts are not affecting tourists. But is this true?

What the authorities said

According to local news, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Economy (SETUE) of Baja California Sur, Fernando Ojeda, declared that the protests now taking place have no serious repercussions on tourists. 

In a recent interview, he declared that federal permit holders and municipal taxi drivers are slowly finding a solution to their problems, thanks to the coordination of the Secretary General of the State Government Saúl Núñez. 

Fernando Ojeda continued by stating that the transportation issue does not only affect Los Cabos but is a problem affecting countries all over the world, following the launch of new platforms, such as Uber and Lyft, that have brought new competition in the field. 

He concluded his speech saying that consensus between all parties will soon be reached. 

The protests

On February 19th, Los Cabos taxi drivers organized a protest outside of the famous Riu Hotel. During the demonstration, they blocked access to the establishment. In particular, a bus full of tourists was affected by the protests for a period of over 40 minutes. 

According to local news, taxi drivers then started to take clients’ suitcases from the bus and moved them to their taxis to drive the tourists to the airport. 

This resulted in the visitors paying a double ticket, one for the bus that never left, and one for the taxi ride. 

Of course, tourists affected by the demonstration were not happy with the situation and harshly criticized the protests. 

One of the people on the bus commented: “The truck is all loaded and they don’t let anyone out there. Nobody enters and nobody leaves. What is the client’s fault for this situation, then? All because of the taxi drivers!” But this was not the only protest that took place recently. Another demonstration was organized in mid-February to protest against local inspectors. 

According to Los Cabos’ transport providers, these state employees started to abuse their power, asking companies for documents containing tourists’ private information.

Benjamín Peña, the legal representative of one of these companies, declared: “Currently, the state, its inspectors, are requesting a pre-contract, a company’s internal control document, which we have (…) However, this contains private data.”

He later added that inspectors had started to exceed their duties to “Benefit those who have historically benefited. Certain families that have a transportation monopoly who, illegally, seek to stop the rest of the companies that, under another federal jurisdiction, are in charge of providing a luxury service that directly competes with theirs.” 

If these accusations are founded, the current situation would unfortunately affect tourists in several ways. For instance, visitors may have to rely on a low number of local transport providers.

On top of this, their privacy may be violated, considering that Los Cabos’ transport providers declared that inspectors are now requesting them to share documents containing clients’ personal information. 

What can tourists do?

Considering the current situation, what can tourists do to avoid being affected? A good choice is to opt for an Uber. Uber drivers have not been impacted by the current protests and continue to provide an efficient service to Los Cabos tourists. 

Another good idea is to book your transfer directly with your chosen resort. Most all-inclusive resorts and five-star hotels in the area offer shuttle buses transporting their guests from the airport to their establishment. 

Despite Fernando Ojeda’s words, at the moment it is still unclear for how long the current situation will persist and whether or not all the parties involved in this issue will soon find common ground.