The Viana do Castelo Chamber approved this Tuesday, by majority, to take over the operation of the public transport service in the urban area of the city from September 2025, the date on which the current service concession ends.
According to the proposal presented by the councilor responsible for mobility, Fabíola Oliveira, and which was rejected by the independent councilor Eduardo Teixeira and by Hugo Meira, from CDS-PP, the municipality will apply until Thursday for the Environmental Fund.
The CDU councilor, Cláudia Marinho, voted in favor and Paulo Vale, from the PSD, abstained.
At the end of the council meeting, asked by journalists about the investment, the number and type of electric buses that will be acquired, as well as the jobs to be created, Luís Nobre said that these issues are being evaluated by teams external to autarchy.
The socialist mayor said that the competition for the intermunicipal public transport service continues to be conducted by the Intermunicipal Community (CIM) of Alto Minho.
Councilor Eduardo Teixeira justified his vote against by considering that the proposal should include an economic-financial study “on the giant step” that the municipality will take, and because it is a considerable investment.
CDS-PP councilor, Hugo Meira, also criticized the lack of information about the proposal presented.
“The CDS-PP has no basis to make a favorable decision. It is a dubious proposal and an expensive whim of the municipality,” he said.
According to the proposal approved this Tuesday, to which Lusa had access, the candidacy that the Viana do Castelo Chamber will compete for, from the Environmental Fund, aims to “reinforce investment in the decarbonization of public transport, increasing the number of new buses of zero emissions for public passenger transport”.
It also intends to include the installation of electricity charging stations.
