Who will be able to benefit from free public transport from January 1 on the Island of Tenerife? The answer is simple: any bus or tram user who makes more than 15 trips per month and has a personal subscription. The latter exist in four categories: Canarian resident, youth, senior and people with disabilities.
“The logistics and methodology are complete and all that remains is to sign the protocol with the Government of the Canary Islands». This is confirmed by the insular Councilor for Mobility, Enrique Arriaga.
Arriaga defends first of all the bus drivers because “there is a malicious campaign – he blames it on Canarian Coalition– which states that universal free admission is going to be implemented, something that is not true because the agreement with the state establishes that it is reduced to those who have bonuses and multi-trips. He insists that the drivers “cannot be the object of the protest or the anger of those who have not found out or have not wanted to do it on January 1 because they show their faces.”
Hence his proposal for a very powerful campaign to explain the situation. That is why he appeals to “the responsibility of those who do not explain it well and launch hoaxes or arguments with bad intentions.” The staff, he insists, “don’t deserve it.” He values his effort during these days “to provide response and quality with such fair means that we are going to increase and improve with the incorporation of 120 buses, plus 44 in 2024 and 100 drivers.”
The island councilor insists that «journey is a single trip even if it is from one tram stop to another». There is no round trip or a minimum of distance to travel. From Weyler to La Paz, for example, would be one. “If you are 14, do one more” Arriaga recommends. This limit of 15 is established with the Ministry because it is considered the border between frequent and sporadic travelers.
with fertilizer
If you currently have a subscription, you simply have to renew it monthly, it will not cost anything to do so. There is no charge for the users whom the Royal Decree of last August is intended to benefit.
New user
If you are a new user, it is mandatory to pay the costs of issuing the personalized card, which is 5 euros and the first month will not be charged. It must always be validated for various reasons, including being entitled to compulsory insurance in the event of an accident or quantifying the number of trips to qualify for subsidies for operators. Those who want to join, including those who go from the wallet bonus, the ten+, to the monthly bonus, just have to register through the web and the next day go to any sales office to validate and collect the nominative bonus at a cost of five euros .
Penalty
If the following month the minimum of 15 trips has not been met in all cases, if you want to renew the subscription, the amount will be charged, at the price of the current 50% discount. It will no longer be a frequent traveler but it will become sporadic.
without gratuity
There are two island lines that retain the concept of a tourist route and are not free. These are the ones that go to Teide I already have that they are not benefited by the gratuity and will continue to be paid.
Staff training
Post-holiday morning debate in a bus of the Santa Cruz de Tenerife intercity service, the 9… Many elderly people with shopping carts headed for the center of the city, basically La Recova, in a practically full vehicle or (with the advance of the stops) above capacity. An incident centers the conversations in a moment in which the door closes when a pregnant woman is going to get off and there is almost an accident. People talk about the future free of charge. From the outset they believe that “they have to provide more buses”, but also guarantee “good training for drivers because there are some who should never have responsibility for a group of people”. Excessive speed, driving and sudden braking are the main criticisms. The insular area of Mobility promises that the hundred that are currently being formed “have a month to prepare and a long time outside of driving.” They guarantee that “the psychological profile is essential for us.” | JDM