MADRID (Reuters) – Truck drivers who brought Spain to a standstill earlier this year started a fresh strike on Monday, with hundreds marching in the capital Madrid demanding changes to road freight rules and protesting the cost of living.
The protest of the unofficial transport defense platform comes a day after a massive rally against public health policies in the Madrid region and a few days A full-scale demonstration against the rising cost of living was held later.
Hundreds of protesters in conspicuous vests marched from Atocha train station through central Madrid to parliament, waving signs such as: “We don’t want subsidies, we want solutions”.
A month-long strike by truck drivers in March and April brought Spanish supply chains to a standstill, causing food shortages, sparking a bout of inflation and hitting quarterly economic growth.
The Transportation Defense Platform called for another open-ended strike on Monday, seeking changes to road freight regulations to protect profits and reduce costs for truckers.
Local media reported that traffic flowed normally at the key supply chain hub at the port of Barcelona and wholesale food markets in Madrid and Seville, the country’s fourth largest city, on Monday.
Truck drivers ended up getting a €1 billion ( 1.03 billion USD) package that included diesel fuel price rebates and 1, Cash bonus in Euros. But they say fuel price increases have outpaced rebates since then.
“There are a lot of people who go bankrupt in the transportation sector because they can’t pay,” said Nuria Hernan, whose husband owns a truck.
“Not worth going out to work,” the 45 year-old added.
(1 USD=0.9668 EUR)
