Mijas ‘burro taxi’ rules introduced 40 years on

NEW rules to regulate Mijas donkey rides – or ‘burro taxis’ – are to be introduced four decades after the tourist attraction was first introduced.

The new Partido Popular governing team is drawing up a specific municipal bylaw which will affect the donkeys and horse-drawn carts, including timetables, conditions and routes, which is due to be approved at the next plenary meeting and is hoped to come into effect this autumn.

A board will be created with representation from the town hall and the donkey owners so that unanimous decisions which affect the sector can be taken. One of the aspects which will be dealt with is the route which the donkeys will take, something which has caused divisions within the town.

Despite complaints over smells and dirt from the donkeys, most business owners in the town understand that the donkeys are a unique selling point to the village which attracts numerous tourists every year. To make it easier for the donkey owners to clean up after their animals, the town hall plans to resurface Calle Malaga.

The timetables planned for the local horses and donkeys will be from 9am to 6.30pm in the autumn and winter and from 8.30am to 9.30pm in the summer, and the donkeys will not be allowed at their ‘stops’ before 8am.

At the moment, the owners organize shifts to benefit all of them, but when the law comes into effect, the town hall will make the decision, as well as how much they charge. Licenses for the activity will be renewed every year and each donkey will have a full registration number.

Photo credit: tatrebil