On Sunday, Palma Town Hall announced that travel on EMT buses will continue to be free in 2025. If there were to be approval of the Spanish Government's subsidy, it had to be given before the end of the year.
It has been given despite the town hall's criticisms, not of the principle of the scheme but of the process and insufficient funding.
A Partido Popular-run administration, it attacked the "political opportunism" of the PSOE-led coalition government. "Just a few days before the end of the year, a decision was adopted unilaterally, without clarifying what amount has been allocated for 2025 and when it (the government) has not yet paid a single euro of the subsidy for the current year." The 18 million euros that Palma can eventually expect are "clearly insufficient".
The town hall again explained on Sunday that it has incurred a loss since the scheme was introduced. This now totals 15 million euros.
"The free service offered by the government has not been real as it has not covered the entire cost. For this to happen, the state contribution must rise to 25 million euros per year." The town hall is demanding that the government bears the entire cost, as the decision that travelling on EMT buses will continue to be free "has been made without taking into account the regional governments or the municipalities".
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