The Platform for Not Closing Roads held a meeting this Friday, January 16, with the mayor of Teguise, Olivia Duque, to discuss the municipal ordinance regulating vehicle traffic on rural roads in the municipality.
Four representatives from the platform participated in the meeting, as well as two residents from Guatiza, who attended on behalf of the residents affected by buggy route traffic in the town. During the meeting, the residents explained the impact this activity has on coexistence and the environment, an intervention that was positively valued by the platform.
According to those present, the mayor pledged to take into account all the allegations submitted, both by occasional users of the paths and by the residents of Guatiza. Duque also viewed the citizen movement generated around this ordinance as positive, considering that it has made the different affected groups visible.
From the platform, it is insisted that the ordinance did not take into account that the term off-road vehicle includes 4x4 vehicles, commonly used by farmers, hunters, and fishermen, which would have meant a direct restriction for these groups.
Following citizen mobilizations and the period for objections, the City Council has been able to assess that the initial approach to the ordinance was not the most appropriate, as stated in the meeting
In conclusion, the platform values the meeting as positive and highlights the mayor's commitment to contact them once the ordinance amendment is drafted, in order to analyze it before its debate in plenary. Furthermore, Duque conveyed his intention that future regulatory updates affecting specific groups should be agreed upon beforehand with the parties involved.