Bolivia Transport Strike Stops Santa Cruz as Drivers Head to Diesel Talks
BOLIVIA · TRANSPORT
Key Facts
- —The country Bolivia is a landlocked Andean country where the state long kept fuel cheap. President Rodrigo Paz ended the diesel subsidy this month.
- —Why it matters Diesel moves many of Bolivia’s buses and lorries. Decree 5716 put its price at Bs17.95 a litre (about US$1.49 at the central bank’s official rate of Bs12.05), and drivers want it repealed.
- —What happened On Monday 28 September a 24-hour national vehicle pullback emptied the streets of Santa Cruz. La Paz, El Alto and Cochabamba kept largely running.
- —Who is involved The national drivers’ union, led by Lucio Gómez; Defence Minister Ernesto Justiniano; and Public Works Minister Mauricio Zamora, who called talks for Tuesday.
- —What it means for you Monday’s stoppage hit Santa Cruz and Sucre hardest. Cochabamba’s transport cooperatives have announced their own 24-hour stoppage for Tuesday unless the government calls them to talks.
- —Still open Whether Tuesday’s talks in La Paz end the dispute, and whether it merges with Evo Morales’s call for protests from 13 October.
The Bolivia transport strike over dearer diesel split the country on Monday. Santa Cruz, the largest city, was left almost without buses, while La Paz and Cochabamba largely kept moving.
The Confederación Sindical de Choferes, the national drivers’ union, called the 24-hour pullback against Decree 5716, which ended the diesel subsidy. Its leaders now take their demand for repeal to ministers on Tuesday.
Where buses stopped, and where they ran
The Cochabamba daily Los Tiempos reported that drivers in four departments joined or ratified the pullback: Santa Cruz, Chuquisaca, Potosí and Oruro. The Santa Cruz daily El Deber reported a full withdrawal in Santa Cruz.
In La Paz and El Alto, minibuses and shared taxis ran normally, the Cochabamba daily Opinión reported. There was no service, however, from La Paz to the Yungas valleys or the north.
The news agency ANF and the broadcaster Unitel reported that only Santa Cruz fully observed the Bolivia transport strike.
Defence Minister Ernesto Justiniano said the pullback was concentrated in Santa Cruz and Sucre, according to the state news agency ABI and the news site Oxígeno.
Classes moved home in Santa Cruz
Nelson Alcócer, head of Santa Cruz’s departmental education office, ordered distance classes for Monday, Unitel reported. More than 90 percent of pupils in public schools depend on public transport, the broadcaster said.
Private schools objected, but Alcócer called it mandatory. El Deber also reported distance classes.
Talks on Tuesday, and a threat from Cochabamba
Public Works Minister Mauricio Zamora has called the drivers to talks in La Paz at 9 a.m. on Tuesday 29 September. Three more ministers are due to attend, El Deber and Los Tiempos reported.
Lucio Gómez, the union’s executive secretary, told the news site Urgente.bo that it would attend and demand “directly the repeal of 5716.” El Deber quoted him promising no road blockades.
In Cochabamba, the transport cooperatives’ federation FECOTRAC announced a 24-hour strike for Tuesday if the government did not call it to talks on Monday, Unitel reported. Its president, Orlando López, warned of longer stoppages, up to an indefinite one, as ANF also reported.
Separately, former president Evo Morales has given the government until 3 October to repeal the decree, threatening protests from 13 October, Infobae reported.
Justiniano replied that nobody “is above the law”, however many people they can mobilise.
What Is Not Yet Known
Whether Tuesday’s talks bring a deal or only a pause. The drivers want full repeal, while the government points to conversion of vehicles to natural gas and credit for new ones, Oxígeno reported.
How widely Monday’s strike was observed is disputed: the government names two cities, local papers up to four departments.
It is also unknown whether Cochabamba stops on Tuesday, and whether the drivers and Morales’s supporters end up on the same streets after 3 October.
Sources: Los Tiempos; El Deber; Opinión; ANF; ABI; Oxígeno; Unitel (schools); Unitel (Cochabamba); Urgente.bo; Infobae. All 27–28 September 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error
Read More from The Rio Times