On Cuba’s Transportation Inspectors and Other Demons
HAVANA TIMES – The route from Havana to Santiago de las Vegas is quite straightforward. When traveling from El Vedado, you get a sense of just how large Havana is. Although public transportation has never been sufficient, at least it used to be designed to accommodate people with different budgets. The gradual disappearance of buses, and with them the P12, P16, and P13 routes, accelerated during the pandemic. Around the same time, a minibus service popularly known as Gacelas began operating, offering long-distance rides at a modest price.
These minibuses introduced a new system based on fares determined by segments of the route. Although private shared taxis were already doing something similar, they gradually adopted the new segments and adjusted their fares accordingly. This new option, which initially offered a cheaper alternative, ultimately made private transportation even more expensive, since after 8 p.m. the Gacelas began charging the same fares as private collective taxi operators.
I haven’t taken a Gacela in several months. The streets have gradually filled with electric tricycles. At first, their fares were lower and provided some relief for passengers, but they too have steadily raised their prices until they are now on par with those charged by drivers and vehicles that actually pay for licenses, are required to have QR codes, and are rigorously inspected.
What is curious is the network they have created in places such as La Herradura Park, on Rancho Boyeros Avenue, where an improvised station has even been set up in the middle of the street. This arbitrary arrangement often means that private taxi drivers and others cannot even drop off their passengers in the area or are forced to park improperly. The same thing happens at 100th Street and Boyeros.
The response from the self-styled bukenkes (informal passenger brokers who operate at taxi stops, terminals, and taxi stands) has not been long in coming. They have taken over sections of the streets and are becoming increasingly aggressive, pressuring passengers to get into the cars they have chosen for us.
Private drivers put up with this situation, and I now wonder whether the reason may also have something to do with the unfair competition posed by these new tricycle stations, which do not seem to face the same pressure from inspectors.
I have spoken with several private shared taxi drivers who have even filed complaints about the situation, especially since their taxes have been raised. But transportation inspectors wash their hands of the tricycle issue, claiming it is a matter for the police; the police say it falls to traffic authorities; and traffic authorities say it is the responsibility of the operations unit.
One reason for this indifference is salaries. None of those authorities mentioned earn enough to make them immune to bribery. To operate legally, tricycle drivers need to have all their paperwork in order: a vehicle inspection certificate, an operating license, driver’s license insurance, and an ONAT tax identification card. And that is when the atmosphere begins to turn murky.
Meanwhile, the fuel crisis, inspectors susceptible to bribes, and the bukenkes continue driving up transportation prices. That is how every apparent solution seems to bring more inconvenience than relief.