Tuk-tuk in Madrid

There are tuk-tuks in Madrid. | Llucia Bergas

Andrew EdeMuro31/12/2023 08:24
TW
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Muro town hall plans to have eight electric tuk-tuks operational by the start of the 2024 tourism season. Like its neighbour Alcudia, Muro has been looking at replacing horse-drawn carriages for some time. Unlike Alcudia, the town hall has opted for tuk-tuks rather than electric carriages.

There are tuk-tuks in Madrid, so Muro won't be the first municipality in Spain to adopt them, but it will certainly be the first in Mallorca. The eight vehicles will be for the eight horse-carriage drivers who currently operate in Playa de Muro.

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Muro's mayor, Miquel Porquer, says that the drivers have themselves requested alternatives. "They've had animal rights activists abuse them and stand in front of the carriages when they are taking tourists out."

The plan is for there to eventually be fifteen tuk-tuks. For now, the granting of municipal licences will bring in 320,000 euros - 40,000 euros per tuk-tuk - with concessions of twenty or thirty years.

The decision to go for tuk-tuks was partly because the process of change from horses is much quicker than with electric carriages. He notes that electric carriages are currently not approved by Europe, albeit this doesn't seem to be preventing Alcudia, while tuk-tuks are fully approved vehicles. He also believes that animal welfare legislation will in any event ban horse-driven carriages.