First Tourism Transport Regulation in Portugal enters into force in April in the city of Porto

The regulation of tourist transport in Porto, which establishes the rules governing tour operators' activities was published in the Official Journal of the Portuguese Republic today, 3 April and officially enters into force on 17 April. 

In the meantime, the Municipality of Porto will implement public transport stops (park and ride systems) in accordance with the new routes and will place horizontal and vertical road signs.

This is an unprecedented step in the country and also a great start to helping make Porto more sustainable in the future. It is the culmination of two years of public discussion and studies regarding this key issue.

The rules were adopted by the Municipal Executive on 31 January and aims to organise the traffic within the city and strengthen its para-transit system.  The regulation provides guidelines for environmental best practices. The new modifications will be included in the Porto Municipality Code.

Development of the regulation took place in open dialogue with the various tour operators in the city, following a cost-benefit assessment.

The municipality is actively engaged in aligning sustainable development of tourism with environmental regulations. Vehicles are required to comply with environmental standards, namely regarding harmful emissions levels and making GPS signal available, so that they can be controllable at the Centre of Integrated Management of the Municipality of Porto. Operators can, therefore benefit from discounts on licences, for example.

Novelty is the fact that tour operators cannot drive on the bus lane, intended solely for public transportation. 

Tourism transport will have their own terminals and stops. 

The role of transport is key when addressing tourism. It provides connections between regions, domestically and internationally, and connects accommodation and commercial services at destinations. 

Porto is engaged in dealing with tourist flows and tourism service providers while delivering adequate transport network performance.

In that regard, the Municipality of Porto is working in close coordination with the different sectors involved in the tourism activities.