Cuba is paralyzed by the Government’s new measures to confront the fuel crisis

Havana/Empty stops, that is the image seen in much of Havana, a city almost paralyzed. In Regla and Guanabacoa, where until recently the A29 route circulated connecting both municipalities, today not a single bus passes. Urban public transport, already fragile, has practically disappeared. And the new measures announced this Friday threaten to worsen the situation, although the authorities avoid using the word “collapse.”

At other points, such as the Guanabacoa traffic light, there are people concentrated, but not because there are active routes. There, inspectors stop state cars and force drivers to load passengers. “There aren’t many state cars on the street either,” explains a woman waiting, without any certainty of the hours it will take to reach her destination. The result is improvised, irregular and humiliating mobility, where moving depends on luck, charity or administrative coercion.

The almost total absence of buses pushes the population towards private transportation, today almost the only means available. But moving around Havana in them has become a luxury. A trip by private car from the Guanabacoa traffic light to the Parque de la Fraternidad cost 350 pesos this week; from there to El Vedado, another 200. In total, 550 pesos to cross the city. “I spent the money I had planned for this trip only on transportation,” summarizes a passenger as he gets out of a taxi.

Electric tricycles, presented at the time as a “sustainable” alternative, barely alleviate the situation. “They are only a little cheaper, 50 or 100 pesos less than cars,” says a passenger to 14ymedio. In addition, their rates also skyrocket. For two weeks, ticket prices have risen exponentially, and the transporters themselves warn that the rise will continue as long as the fuel shortage persists.

These vehicles, which are light and have a capacity for a maximum of six passengers, have the additional problem that the arrangement of their wheels prevents them from effectively fording potholes. This characteristic forces drivers to go at very low speed and take dangerous detours to try not to fall into the many holes that dot Havana’s streets.

The impact of current restrictions is not limited to mobility. The transportation crisis is already beginning to be reflected in the prices of basic products. A small merchant in Regla reported that his suppliers increased the price of all bread by 20 pesos “due to fuel issues,” and he fears that the same will happen with the rest of the food. The increase in transportation costs is transferred, almost immediately, to the cost of living.

“People think that since jobs and school are shortened, there is no longer a need to move,” reflects a resident of Guanabacoa. “But what do I do if I want to see a family member, go out at night or visit a nearby place like Havana or El Vedado?” The question summarizes a reality that the official discourse avoids: the city is not only work and study, it is also social life, affection, leisure. All of this is now conditional on the money available to pay an inflated fare.

The official measures do not scare away the fears of the population, although they have been presented as an “opportunity.” On the television program Mesa Redonda, the deputy prime minister and minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, recognized the “low availability” of fuel and announced new restrictions. The Cimex Corporation reported that, “until conditions allow, fuel sales in CUP and the marketing of diesel fuel in USD to the population are postponed.”

In addition, starting February 7, the Ticket application will be implemented in service centers that sell gasoline in dollars, as was done until now with purchases in pesos. The stated objective is to “organize the process”, but the limit imposed – 20 liters per registration – confirms the magnitude of the shortage. The measure, far from normalizing access, institutionalizes rationing and leaves out those who do not earn in foreign currency.

In parallel, the Ministry of Transportation has announced the drastic reduction of interprovincial services, the suspension of national routes and the readjustment of urban and workers’ transportation throughout the country. Trains with spaced departures – every eight days –, canceled buses and exclusive priority for sectors considered “strategic” complete a panorama of almost total paralysis.

In practice, the State withdraws from daily mobility and transfers the problem to the citizens. Whoever can pay, moves; who doesn’t, stays. “People who don’t have money will move for charity or they won’t move,” says one testimony. It is the new reality of the country.