No Public Buses in Pinar del Rio, Cuba until Further Notice
The only vehicles that continue to provide a little service in the province are the electric tricycle fleet, which meet only a small fraction of demand.
HAVANA TIMES – The authorities of Pinar del Río reported that the suspension of public transport that begins this Saturday – justified by the “difficulties” in acquiring fuel – will continue “until conditions allow the restoration.” Nor will the train from the provincial capital to Havana operate, indispensable for pinareños who work in the capital of the Island.
Another of the affected routes is the one that leads to the municipality of Guane, which will resume its “usual departure until the 16th,” according to a statement from the Directorate of Transport. This train left on September 12 to transport students from the provincial capital, although the report does not specify if they are scholarship students whose return transport is guaranteed.
The only vehicles that continue to provide service in the province are the fleet of electric tricycles in which the Minister of Transport, Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila, has encoded the solution to the debacle of transport – a partial one, since it depends on the unstable electricity generation of the country. The statement, however, does not explain whether the 20 tricycles in Pinar del Río will continue to operate normally after the announcement.
Rodríguez Davila said last June – when the tricycles were donated – that it would be “very important to incorporate these vehicles” due to the “difficulties with the availability of fuel, spare parts, batteries and tires for the means of transport.” It was a preview of what was to come after the summer.
The key to keeping the tricycles going is the operation of thermoelectric plants and other components of the National Electric System, which continues from one crisis to the next. Both the thermoelectric plants and the floating generating platforms, the “patanas” rented from the Turkish company Karpowership, are in check for the same reason that the province’s transport is paralyzed: the lack of fuel, an excuse to which the Government has been resorting for years to explain the debacle.
According to the daily report of the Unión Eléctrica Co., this Saturday unit 2 of the Felton thermopower plant (Holguín) and units 5 and 6 of the Renté thermoelectric plant (Santiago de Cuba) continue in repair. About 50 distributed stationary generation plants are paralyzed, and the Regla generator – part of the floating plants that the Government celebrated as one of its energy solutions – are also out of service.
A deficit of 890 megawatts was estimated over the weekend, which translated into more blackouts, offering no relief even though the summer – the most critical period due to high consumption – is over.
Each province has sought supposed alternatives in the face of the crisis. In Villa Clara, whose provincial capital depends almost exclusively on private transport, the official press has denounced the overexploitation of animal-drawn vehicles. Horse-drawn carts, which connect the center with key points of the city – hospitals, the bus and train terminals, and the exit to Camajuaní – increasingly expose the drivers’ abuses.
This Friday, Vanguardia described how the animals are subjected to “fright, pain and fatigue” when they are whipped by the cart drivers. Faced with the passengers’ protests, the driver replies: “The horse is mine, and I’ll do with it what I want. If you don’t like it, get off.”
Amid the crisis, with no end in sight, it is almost ironic that the Government organizes a Renewable Energy Fair with the aim of “exchanging experiences and knowledge that pay tribute to Cuba’s strategy of changing its energy matrix.” With money from its allies – in particular China – the Island plans to install more and more solar panels, a new “solution” with which the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, promises – as he has done so many times before – to end the blackouts once and for all.
Translated by Regina Anavy for Translating Cuba
Cuba’s quest for freedom from American imperialism has been intertwined with its history since the late 19th century, but it gained momentum especially after the Cuban Revolution of 1959. Led by Fidel Castro, this revolution sought to overthrow the Batista regime, which was supported by the United States and characterized by widespread corruption and inequality. The new revolutionary government aimed to establish an independent socialist state that would prioritize the needs of the Cuban people over foreign interests, particularly those of the United States, which had historically dominated Cuba economically and politically.
The victory of the Cuban Revolution marked a turning point, as it represented not just a shift in governance but a rejection of American imperialism. The United States, concerned about the rise of a socialist state so close to its shores, responded with hostility. This included the implementation of the economic embargo in 1960, which sought to isolate Cuba economically and politically. The embargo aimed to suffocate the Cuban economy, hoping to spur dissent against the government and ultimately lead to its collapse.
Over the decades, the U.S. embargo has created significant shortages within Cuba, affecting various aspects of daily life. One of the most visible impacts has been on public transportation. The country has long suffered from a lack of reliable public buses, reflecting the broader challenges of maintaining essential services under the constraints imposed by the embargo. With limited access to new vehicles and parts, the public transportation system has struggled to provide adequate services to the population.
Cuba relies heavily on imports for many of its needs, including public transportation infrastructure. However, the embargo restricts not just trade with the U.S. but also complicates trade with other nations that might otherwise wish to do business with Cuba. This results in delays, higher costs, and sometimes an unavailability of critical replacement parts for buses and other public transport vehicles. Consequently, many buses that do remain operational are often old and poorly maintained, leading to long delays and overcrowding for the average commuter.
Moreover, the economic impact of the embargo has extended into multiple sectors, including healthcare and education, which have suffered from resource shortages as well. The cumulative effect of the embargo has been to undermine the very social programs that the Cuban government has worked to establish, causing frustration among the populace and exacerbating the challenge of providing adequate public services like transportation.
In essence, Cuba’s quest for freedom from American imperialism has been continually challenged by the very policies intended to stifle it. While the government has sought to forge a path of self-sufficiency and independence, the realities of the embargo have created tangible hardships that affect everyday life for millions of Cubans. This tension between the quest for sovereignty and the structural limitations imposed by external pressures remains a central theme in Cuba’s ongoing story.
Unbelievable no transportation of people needed items
This much worse than Mexico or Brazil
I live in a minivan or a insulated tent with a propane heater be disabled and live a better life in most of the world than teachers or a nurse in Cuba. I wish the gov would let other people from India Europe Mexico and other countries just take over all food production and transport of food and people. Also work with China and Japan to put up solar panels used diesel powered trucks to transfer goods and people. The Cuban gov needs to step back and give up control now of all food production except for 10% to go to food banks for old and disabled. Step back give 20 yrs lease on farmland 50 years on manufacturing and forests management in my opinion