Judgment No 137 of 2024

THE BAN ON NEW LICENSES FOR PRIVATE HIRE VEHICLES IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

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In Judgment No 137/2024, the Constitutional Court (the “Court”) declared that the ban on issuing new licenses for private hire vehicles (PHV), which was intended to remain in effect until an electronic register of transportation service providers became operational, was unconstitutional and violated Articles 3, 41 and 117 IC, the latter in conjunction with the freedom of establishment under Article 49 TFEU.
More than five years since the adoption of the ban, the register was yet to become operational, resulting in an indefinite halt to the issuance of much-needed licenses. This had irrational, competition-reducing effects. In the context of a scarcity of passenger transporton-demand services, the prolonged ban harmed consumers and had the sole tangible effect of protecting taxi operators, who compete with PHV operators.
On these grounds, the Court declared that the ban was unreasonable and breached Article 3 IC. Additionally, the limitations that the ban imposed on new operators were not justified by the pursuit of public interests, and therefore infringed Article 41 IC. Finally, the ban hindered the establishment of new operators while favouring existing PHV and taxi operators, in breach of Article 117 IC, in conjunction with Article 49 TFEU.