News
Torrevieja makes things difficult for applicants for new taxi licenses

Pablo Samper, a councilman and spokesperson for Sueña Torrevieja, openly questioned the Torrevieja City Council’s decision to issue taxi licenses with “inaccessible technical requirements” and a deadline of March 24th.
Following the City Council’s revision of the municipal ordinance and announcement of the introduction of 16 taxi licenses in multiple phases, the process was started. Six licenses are offered for tender in the first round. There are currently about eighty-four taxis operating in the city.
Since the tender was launched, Samper notes, interested parties have encountered “serious difficulties in being able to submit bids.” The opposition councillor claims that the procedure’s intricacy demonstrates that it was created “without taking into account the reality of the sector.” According to him, the process necessitates a level of computer proficiency and administrative procedure knowledge “that is unacceptable for any ordinary person,” to the extent that the profile of the contractor is utilised by municipal supplier companies to choose public tenders.
Giving more points to bidders who buy an electric or hybrid car—especially if it’s a Euro cab modified for persons with limited mobility—is one of the prize criteria.
No hybrids
Since there are presently no hybrid vans that are modified for Euro taxis available in dealerships and the models that could meet the requirements have delivery times of four to six months, Samper claims that “the lack of supply on the market makes this requirement practically impossible to meet.”
Additionally, these cars need to be adapted to accommodate disabled individuals once they are purchased, which results in an extra three to five weeks of waiting. Some hybrid versions aren’t even adaptable because ramps can’t be installed because the batteries are on the underside of the car.
The City Council demands that the licenses granted be operational within 60 days, notwithstanding these challenges, “which makes this process, quite simply, unfeasible,” according to Samper.
Five years old
Another requirement is that cars must be no more than five years old; newer models receive more points. The technical sheet is the sole way to confirm that the date of the vehicle’s first registration is the date required by the City Council to be used for assessment. “How is it possible for a bidder to display the technical sheet of an unpurchased vehicle? This opposing party notes that this is an obvious illustration of the process’s flaws.
Answers
Sueña Torrevieja cannot keep quiet about a tender that excludes the great majority of drivers and jeopardises our city’s taxi service because “Torrevieja needs solutions, not a process designed to fail,” says Samper.
“We have to deal with an unfathomable technical process, impossible timeframes, and unmet criteria. The councillor asserts that the City Council needs to fix these mistakes right away in order to make obtaining a taxi licence feasible, equitable, and open.
In Torrevieja, a municipality with over 106,000 residents according to the municipal register and ten thousand fewer according to the National Institute of Statistics’ official census, there are very few offers from Driver-Drive Tourism Vehicles (VTC) businesses like Uber, Cabify, or Bolt.
Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Costa Blanca
Sticky Vicky’s daughter quits mum’s iconic Benidorm show

Adhesive the stage act has been sensationally abandoned by Vicky’s daughter, who has followed in her late mother’s footsteps, thereby leaving behind her family’s Benidorm legacy.
The unexpected decision was made after María Gadea Aragón assumed responsibility for the adult-themed magic performances following the passing of her mother, Victoria María Aragón Gadea, in 2023 at the age of 80.
María, who had been employing her mother’s stage identity in the well-known Spanish resort, has now discontinued her performances after a decade on stage.
María performed frequently at venues including the Palladium, Zodiaco, and Rockerfellers, as well as Benidorm which is a popular destination for British expatriates and vacationers.
Des Bellamy-Wright, an employee at the Benidorm Palladium, verified that María is no longer employed in the lively Spanish city. Des stated, “Sticky Vicky is no longer operational in Benidorm.” The ‘Carmen Snake – Sticky Show’ is a similarly entertaining program that is broadcast every night at 12:45 a.m. “
The official reason for Maria’s retirement was not disclosed, and her final performance was in November 2024.
Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Costa Blanca
Elche’s H&M shop closing

The Swedish retail chain H&M announced in 2024 that it would be reducing the number of stores and employment it has in Spain due to “organisational, productive, and economic” reasons. Around 50 layoffs were the result of the closure of stores in the L’Aljub retail centres in Elche, Ociopía in Orihuela, and Habaneras in Torrevieja, which had consequences for the province of Alicante.
Additionally, these were the sole instances in the Valencian Community that were impacted. The Torrevieja store was the first to shut its doors in May 2024 since that time. The Orihuela store was subsequently closed on September 14th of the same year. Currently, the Elche store has shuttered its doors. The facility was closed to the public on March 14th, following its final day of operation on March 11th. It will be entirely shut down on March 22nd. Approximately 20 employees are being laid off at this Elche store. It is the final establishment in the province of Alicante that will not reopen, and the circumstances of the dismissal were negotiated in October. The employees have departed the company with an agreement as a result of these negotiations, according to Yolanda de la Casa, the general secretary of the CCOO Services Federation in Alicante.
The dismissal terms that were established following the October negotiations were 45 days until 2012 and 33 days until the present. A gratuity of 3,500 euros was granted for the first five years, 4,000 euros for the next ten years, and a maximum of 4,500 euros for the subsequent years.
Furthermore, three relocations have occurred among the 50 individuals who were laid off in the province, spanning Elche, Orihuela, and Torrevieja. Lely Fernández of UGT l’Alacantí-La Marina informed this newspaper that these were part-time employees from the Habaneras shopping centre in Torrevieja who were transferred to the La Zenia shopping centre, which continues to operate and is accessible.
H&M initiated 2024 by announcing the closure of 28 stores and approximately 588 collective redundancies. The figure was reduced to 521 reductions in a subsequent revision.
The Torrevieja store closed its doors to the public on May 17th, 2024, and the lease expired on May 24th, never to be reopened. Nevertheless, numerous employees at this establishment were granted the opportunity to relocate to other nearby stores that were still operational. In September 2024, Ociopía followed suit, and Elche followed suit in March 2025.
The H&M group operates over 100 stores and employs nearly 4,000 individuals in the country. This decision was made by the Scandinavian company in order to “adapt and perfect” its stores in a “changing” shopping environment for its consumers. Additionally, Spain would be responsible for 17% of the brand’s global closures, as indicated by the data that the company disclosed months ago when it presented its 2023 financial year.
Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Costa Blanca
Man stole fire extinguishers to sell as scrap metal

A 20-year-old male is currently under investigation by the Guardia Civil for the purported theft of ten fire extinguishers. The fire extinguishers were discovered by Seprona officers during an inspection of a scrap metal establishment in Torrevieja. The store manager and the criminal are both the subject of an investigation.
The fire extinguishers, which were in near-new condition and completely charged, were discovered by the Servicio de Protección a la Naturaleza (Seprona) officers during the inspection. The investigation was initiated due to the fact that this material is “uncommon” in this form of business, as explained by sources from the Armed Forces.
Upon discovering the fire extinguishers, the officers enquired about the scrapyard manager’s documentation regarding the extinguishers’ arrival. The manager responded that he did not possess any proof of ownership. Additionally, he disclosed that a woman and her son had abandoned them there without his permission.
The company responsible for maintaining the fire extinguishers was identified by Seprona officers after they analysed the evidence and proof acquired. This verified that the extinguishers were located in a building in Torrevieja. The missing equipment was reported by the property manager of this community of proprietors shortly thereafter.
Fire extinguishers were recovered
Officers were permitted to confiscate the fire extinguishers and transport them to the Torrevieja Civil Guard barracks as a result of the formal complaint. Upon verification of their origin, they were returned to their legitimate owners.
The individuals implicated have been identified as a result of the operation. The 20-year-old man who is supposed to have stolen the fire extinguishers is being investigated for theft, while the 23-year-old proprietor of the scrap yard is being investigated for receiving stolen goods.
The Guardia Civil emphasises the necessity of reporting these types of incidents and reminds all individuals of the significance of doing so. In order to prevent the acquisition of stolen material, scrap metal dealers must establish rigorous controls, such as document checks on sellers and items received.
Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
-
Costa Blanca6 days ago
More than 1.5 million bottle caps are donated by Benidorm to the “Caps for a New Life” charity initiative
-
Costa Blanca1 week ago
A couple from El Campello who were wanted for the nation’s biggest cocaine haul turn themselves in
-
Costa Blanca5 days ago
In Benidorm, a repeat abuser breaks into his ex-‘s home and assaults her
-
Costa Blanca4 days ago
The importance of bees is a topic that children in Alicante are being taught
-
Costa Blanca4 days ago
In 2024, the Emergency Department received over 250,000 calls from Alicante
-
Costa Blanca1 week ago
Two men arrested after robbing an Alicante man, setting fire to his car and abandoning it in the mountains
-
Costa Blanca1 week ago
A huge anabolic laboratory in Alicante is dismantled by the National Police
-
Costa Blanca1 week ago
Following a robbery in Alicante, a gang that had stolen from homes in Spain, France, and Italy are arrested