Violent demonstrations and clashes with police in the Pachacamac district east of Lima have prompted the city to adjust its Blue Corridor public transportation reform.
Residents blocked La Molina and Victor Malasquez avenues in Pachacamac’s Manchay neighborhood to prevent the circulation of Blue Corridor feeder buses which serve the mountainous, largely informal neighborhoods of Pachacamac east of metropolitan Lima. The feeder buses depart from the easternmost bus stops on the Javier Prado-La Marina-Faucett route.
Protesters are demanding the return of informal buses which charged $0.14 and served various destinations throughout Lima. The Blue Corridor feeder buses charge $0.34. In addition to the fare hike, the Blue Corridor buses ultimately serve the Javier Prado-La Marina-Faucett vein only while traditional buses ran routes to downtown Lima, San Juan de Lurigancho and other districts.
On Monday protesters blocked the road with hundreds of rocks so cars could not pass. While police were able to clear the road using tear gas to disperse the crowd, thousands of protesters returned to burn tires and fight with police on Tuesday, again blocking access to Manchay.
Dozens have been injured in the clashes, which caused a temporary closing of the hospital in Manchay. While the facility usually employs five full-time doctors, only two could arrive to work due to the blocking of the road.
On Tuesday Lima’s transport authority, ProTransporte, announced it would indefinitely cancel the feeder bus which served Manchay from the Blue Corridor system. Four private bus companies will be allowed to run their traditional routes as city officials and neighborhood leaders organize negotiations.
“We request that everybody in the area not be scared or intimidated by unscrupulous people,” ProTransporte president Roxana Rocha said in a press conference. “We reiterate that we do not want to run over anyone’s rights.”
City officials have maintained that the private bus companies are intentionally feeding false information to local residents in order to sow dissent.
Of 10 routes connecting the Javier Prado-La Marina-Faucett, at least seven of which serve Pachacamac, Pro Transporte is only negotiating the future of the 255 feeder route which serves Manchay.
Just over half of the Pachacamac district’s 130,000 residents live in Manchay, a significant percentage of whom live in extreme poverty in informal housing and lack electricity and running water.
Sources
CORREDOR AZUL JAVIER PRADO ALIMENTADORES (ProTransporte)
Vecinos de Manchay exigen se elimine ruta alimentadora Manchay- Javier Prado (Andina)
Pobladores de Manchay bloquean carretera por segundo día (Andina)
Suspenden indefinidamente operación de ruta alimentadora Manchay-Javier Prado (Andina)
Manchay: Lima suspende “indefinidamente” ruta tras protestas (El Comercio)
Manchay: posta colapsó por cantidad de heridos tras protestas (El Comercio)
Manchay: vecinos bloquean pista y marchan contra Corredor Azul (El Comercio)
Manchay: ruta alimentadora fue retirada de manera definitiva (El Comercio)
Manchay: miles causan destrozos en segundo día de protestas (El Comercio)
Los hijos de Manchay (La Republica)
View Comments (1)
I also would like a return to the informal busses. I was late for an appointment in Parque Kennedy the other day and hoped on a Blue bus. As I was on the corner of Arequipa & Angamos, the ride on an informal would have cost 50 centavos - but I had to pay 1.20 soles on the Blue.
While this increase will not cause me any problems, I am sure people on much tighter budgets feel the pinch, especially if they use the Blues every day. What is wrong with healthy competition???
PS - I agree the Blues are more modern and well kept, but riding in an informal held together with duct tape and body putty is part of the excitement of Lima.