The daily frustration of being stuck in traffic jams in, out and around Palma continues and it is now having an impact on how the city’s taxi services operate. Last week I was advised by the taxi service to book a taxi a good hour in advance to get from the centre of Palma to Son Esapses Hospital, a distance of some 6 kilometres, as I could not afford to miss the appointment.
Then the return journey was even more complicated. Knowing how long I would be, I called to book a taxi, but they would not allow me to because the hospital has a taxi rank, but as it was raining on arrival there were no taxis. I was told to call again if they were no taxis and they would then send one. Fortunately, a taxi had just dropped someone off, so I grabbed it.
The cabbie told me I was lucky as we drove over the gridlock on the Via Cintura ring road. He told me that he had given up responding to bookings or collect calls because of the length of time he now spends in traffic getting from A to B in Palma. He said it was not worth his time or money, so he tends to base himself at the taxi rank on the Borne, along with other like-minded taxi drivers. He blamed the one-person, one-car culture in Mallorca, poor public transport and the lack of car-sharing schemes which are flourishing on the mainland. Perhaps it’s time to change transport plan direction.