About a month after the last protest, on April 5th, drivers and partners have demonstrations scheduled for Lisbon, Coimbra, Porto, Faro and Leiria for better working conditions, again with the institutional support of the National Movement Association (AMN) -- TVDE.

Speaking to Lusa, the president of AMN-TVDE, Vítor Soares, explained that the organization supports the demands and is in solidarity with the partners and drivers, adding that since the last protest "there have been no major responses" to the sector's concerns.

"There are two new items on the list of demands, namely the issue of taxis in TVDE applications and the suspension of TVDE operator licenses until the revision of law 45/2018", said Vítor Soares.

According to Vítor Soares, in the essence of what became known as the Uber law, TVDEs are considered uncharacterized vehicles, so "taxis, being considered public transport and duly identified, cannot be available on the platforms", and so far only Bolt has this option.

"We have nothing against taxis, but we are in an unfair situation, given that taxis have several supports that TVDEs do not have", he said, giving the example of insurance values 50% cheaper or the fact that taxis have squares to wait for customers.

Among other issues that lead to the demonstration is also the claim for the payment of 50% of the kilometer of the trip until the customer is picked up, given that the platforms sometimes assign trips 10 kilometers from the passengers' pick-up point without any compensation for the driver.

The partners and drivers also demand the increase of the current minimum fare to the customer per trip from 4.25 euros up to three kilometers, the reduction of the platforms' commission from 25% to 15%, the inspection of licenses by the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT) and that drivers take the exam at the IMT exam centers nationwide.

The group also intends to review law 45/2018, recalling Vítor Soares that the association is already having meetings with the parties with parliamentary seats to present its proposals for amendment.

Demonstrations are planned in Lisbon, Coimbra, Porto, Faro and Leiria, and in the capital the gathering is scheduled for 7:00 am on Avenida Dom João V, in Amoreiras, then going to Avenida da Liberdade, where they should remain until 9:00 pm.

In the Algarve, the gathering will be between 8:00 am and 12:00 pm, next to Faro airport, and between 7:30 am and 12:30 pm, next to the Algarve Stadium, while in Porto the protest is scheduled for Praça General Humberto Delgado, between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm.

In Coimbra the gathering is scheduled for 4:00 pm in Praça da Canção, followed by a walk, at 6:00 pm, to the City Hall. In Leiria, the protest should take place between 2:30 pm and 6:30 pm, next to the IMT.

Currently, the National Movement Association -- TVDE, which elected its new social bodies in March, has about 200 members and is in the process of attracting new members.

The number of TVDE driver certificates registered in Portugal is, according to the IMT, 68,068, according to the most recent data, relating to April 1st.

There are 13 licensed TVDE electronic platform operators in Portugal, but only two (Bolt and Uber) are active, the others being Its My Ride, Vemja, Tazzi, Chofer, Klibber, Mobiz, Tarine, Ixat, Leb, Plink and Just Easy Mob!.

The revision of the law that regulates TVDE, scheduled for 2022, has not yet advanced, five years after its entry into force, on November 1, 2018.

In 2023, the PS Government led by António Costa postponed the revision of the law that governs the activity of the sector, predicting that it would be concluded this year, after the European Union directive on TVDE was known.

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