Porteadores To Protest Again Tomorrow
Get ready for another day of traffic chaos, as the "porteadores" are again taking to the streets in protest.

José Alberto Alfaro, vice-president of the Cámara de Porteadores, said that the "informal taxi drivers" will take to the streets as they did last Tuesday in the hopes of pressuring legislators and the Poder Ejecutivo for a decision on regulating "el porteo" or informal taxi service.

"We want them to comply with what was promised us", said Alfaro, referring to an announcement last week by Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes minister, Karla González, in the late hours of last Tuesday that ended the protest, where the minister announced the creation of a comission to study any amendement to the law formalizing the porteo.

The porteadores are worried that the Comisión de Asuntos Jurídicos that is studying reforms to the Código de Comercio will completely eliminate the porteo.

"Now the deputies are informing us of another thing, that they are not deputies for the people, that they must comply to the wished of Ottón Solís amd Óscar Arias", said Alfaro. The porteadores are indignated because last Tuesday they were promised something different, Alfaro added.

The organizers of tomorrow's protest hope that all 8.000 or so porteadores will converge on San José in a show of solidarity and that those who cannot come to San José, will organize local protests. Alfaro said that there is no decision yet as to where they will be headed, for the Legislative Assembly or Casa Presidencial.

The formal taxi drivers, for their part, are confident that the legislators will resolve the provisions in the law and once and for all disallow the porteo. Alexis Retana, who represents the independent taxi drivers, "we hope that the legislators do not fall victim to the provocations by the porteadores."

In a counter protest, Retana said that the formal taxi drivers will be carrying a flag of Costa Rica as a symbol of trust that the legislators will uphold compliance to the country's laws.