The Santa Cruz City Council is contemplating the possibility of developing a fresh municipal Mobility and Road Safety ordinance in response to the recent judgement delivered by the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC). This ruling has temporarily suspended five articles of the regulations – specifically 6.1, 10.1, 20, 24, and 25 – granting the council authority to restrict access of certain vehicles for environmental reasons to the Low Emissions Zone (ZEB) or to park in specific areas within the city. These interim measures were implemented by the judiciary following a complaint lodged by the Urban El Perenquén Neighborhood Association.
The Councilor for Mobility, Evelyn Alonso, declared during the municipal plenary session yesterday that “we intend to challenge these provisional measures and uphold the commendable work carried out by the Mobility department’s technicians. Our objective is to maintain the validity of the regulations, which, among other things, empower the Local Police to enforce road safety regulations. These measures, combined with environmental initiatives, have been temporarily halted.”
The councilor responded to enquiries from the socialist group concerning the council’s strategies after the TSJC’s ruling on the aforementioned ordinance. In this context, the PSOE spokesperson, Patricia Hernández, recalled that “during the plenary session where this regulation was passed, my group chose to abstain, as we believed that the regulatory impact assessments presented were inadequate. We even cautioned them to proceed with caution, as the objections already signalled potential repercussions in the economic and gender impact evaluations.”
Hernández urged the Mobility Councilor to “commence work on a new ordinance irrespective of her defense of the existing one, as there is a risk that the city may be left without regulations once the ongoing legal procedure concludes. This regulation is at risk of being entirely overturned, as its predecessor was, or as has occurred in other Spanish municipalities.”
Alsono elucidated that “we are collaborating with technicians and legal advisors on interim measures, but we are also exploring all available options, including the formulation of a new ordinance. At present, we are exploring avenues to safeguard the current regulation, which is highly intricate and aims to comply with national and European directives.” She assured, “the ordinance remains in effect and, regarding interim measures, will be enforced until higher-ranking directives are established. The city’s interests are secured.”
Resolutions
Conversely, the plenary session deliberated over six motions proposed by the Vox and PSOE parties on diverse subjects, of which only one related to the restoration of Santa Cruz’s folklore school by the Autonomous Organization of Culture was agreed upon. This proposal was put forward by the socialists and urged the city council to initiate workshops focusing on traditional instruments, attire, songs, and dances training.
The votes from the local government (CC and PP) dismissed proposals aiming to abolish the collection of capital gains from January 1, 2025, advocated by Vox. The Treasury Councilor, José Alberto Díaz Estébanez, articulated that “such a move would essentially benefit property sellers.” The PSOE motion for the development of inclusive playgrounds in schools did not proceed, as Mayor of Infrastructure, Javier Rivero, explained that “this initiative is already in progress.” Rivero also rejected another socialist motion regarding La Hacienda de Las Palmas de Anaga, which falls under the Council’s jurisdiction.
