Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - According to an article published yesterday by El Informador, after at least 12 violent incidents between local taxi and Uber drivers, Mayor Arturo Dávalos Peña has started a security operation to prevent the ride-hailing service from operating in Puerto Vallarta without permission.

Uber began operating in Puerto Vallarta on June 27, and the nonconformity of traditional taxi drivers was immediate, since the private transportation service is not authorized to operate in the city.

The company filed an amparo that protects them from adhering to the State Mobility Law, which means the Mobility Secretariat (Semov) can not prevent the platform from operating in the Metropolitan Area. However, Puerto Vallarta has its own transportation system, so the city can prohibit Uber from providing services in the tourist center.

"If Uber is not authorized to operate in Puerto Vallarta, we will not allow them to be operating here. Until they comply with all the requirements requested by the Semov, they can not operate in city centers, such as in the case of Puerto Vallarta," the Mayor explained. "I asked our Director of Public Safety and the Municipal Traffic Director to act in accordance with law and in accordance with our regulations."

The municipal government has imposed violations on Uber cars, although it is necessary to find the drivers in flagrante. That is to say, authorities must be there when the user climbs into the car and prove that the service is being provided by the platform, which is not so simple, warns the Mayor, as some Uber cars have plates from different states and are not on record.

Dávalos Peña mentioned that the taxi drivers have created their own "operation," which consists of getting tourists out of Uber cars and into their own cars, then taking them to their destination - free of charge. Surprisingly, this has not gone over well with Uber users, who argue that everyone has the right to choose the mode of transportation that suits their needs.

He pointed out that the confrontations have not been one-sided, saying that the Uber drivers have also had face-offs with the taxi drivers.

"We are a tourist destination and any act of violence or confrontation of this kind hurts us. Local restaurateurs and merchants have met with the taxi drivers and their unions, asserting that we do not want scandals; that if they care for this tourist destination, they will call a truce until July 17, when the federal authority determine whether or not Uber services will proceed," the Mayor concluded.