Orihuela City Council has modified the rules governing the process to grant eight new taxi licences. The procedure, which has been pending since 2015, was restarted in May 2025 following a court ruling. That judgement compelled the local authority to issue at least one new licence in a municipality that currently has only 42 licences for 86,000 inhabitants. Orihuela has not created any new taxi licences since 2005, despite regulations stipulating that there should be one taxi for every thousand registered residents.
The latest adjustment follows the detection of an error in the subjective assessment criteria within the competition rules. It comes after an initial revision made in September last year, when several administrative appeals were partially accepted regarding the weighting of professional experience and language skills.
A total of 33 applicants entered the process in November, and the definitive list of admitted and excluded candidates—which turned away five applicants—was published in March. However, in July, the evaluation panel tasked with scoring the candidates reported “certain uncertainties that prevented a sufficiently objective and consistent assessment”. These doubts related specifically to the methods used for calculating professional experience, language qualifications, and unemployment status.
A subsequent technical and legal report concluded that these issues were not minor points of interpretation but serious flaws capable of altering candidate scores, the order of precedence, and the ultimate outcome of the selection.
Processing error forces new window
The legal report revealed that the published guidelines were identical to the original draft and had failed to incorporate the changes arising from the September appeals. Consequently, the council department headed by councillor Víctor Valverde (PP) was forced to publish the present modification. While the core criteria remain the same, the new text clarifies the rules for calculating, proving, and timing the merits submitted.
To comply with principles of equal treatment and open competition, officials decided that applying these clarified rules exclusively to existing candidates was legally unviable. As a result, a new 20-calendar-day application window has been opened. This allows new candidates to apply and permits existing applicants to complete, alter, or replace their documentation.
The official file maintains that the adjustment does not seek to benefit or prejudice any applicant, nor to alter previous markings, as the evaluation panel halted its work before adopting any definitive scoring decisions.
Growing concern among original applicants
Despite these assurances, the decision has created significant concern among candidates who were included on the initial list. Some argue that altering such selection processes mid-way is only permissible under extraordinary circumstances, leading them to suspect the committee may be attempting to allow specific individuals to enter the contest.
“It is not normal that people who did not apply original can now do so, possibly presenting qualifications they did not hold at the time,” stated affected candidates. They added: “Only three specific points are being clarified, while almost nothing else changes, which is what makes it so striking.”
Sources among the applicants expressed frustration with municipal oversight: “The City Council’s technical staff drafted and validated the rules, and now they claim there are deficiencies—curiously just as the evaluation committee meets for a second time and reviews the draft scores.” They described the reopening to new applicants as “unfair” given that an official list of admitted and excluded candidates had already been published.
Candidates also highlighted practical anomalies caused by the delay. For instance, an applicant who was unemployed during the initial submission period but has since found work stands to lose 100 points, whereas a new applicant who is currently unemployed will gain those 100 points. “Those who passed the most recent local driving exam are also now eligible to apply,” they noted, warning: “At this rate, the new licences will not be operational before next summer.”
Shortage of adapted vehicles
The continuous delays come against the backdrop of an acute shortage of taxis to cover Orihuela’s extensive territory, particularly along Orihuela Costa during peak tourist periods. In practice, only around 23 taxis serve the coastal section. By comparison, neighbouring Torrevieja operates approximately 90 licences and has completed two separate licensing calls during the current term.
Of the eight licences currently up for tender in Orihuela, four are strictly designated for adapted vehicles tailored for people with reduced mobility. Local disability advocacy group Orihuela Sin Barreras (Orihuela Without Barriers) has repeatedly urged the council to ensure these Eurotaxi services are operational.
Over recent weeks, the association received numerous complaints from residents unable to travel due to simultaneous mechanical breakdowns affecting the only three adapted taxis operating across the main town and its outlying districts.
“Both taxi professionals and our group are demanding a comprehensive taxi ordinance,” stated Belén Cascales, president of Orihuela Sin Barreras. She emphasised the urgency of issuing additional adapted licences and establishing clear regulations to ensure accessible vehicles remain available across the entire municipality at all times.
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