Although the date on which public transport will begin to operate across the Atanasio Girardot international bridge has not yet been determined Miguel Peñaranda, Director of the Cúcuta Metropolitan Area, stated during a tour he took on Tuesday along the international bridge along with other Colombian officials, that representatives of the public transport of the Venezuelan border had been notified that only units newer than the model year 2003 will be allowed to enter Colombia.
By La Patilla – Luz Dary Depablos
Jan 03, 2023
“They are exposed to the fact that the Venezuelan government offers credit lines for the renewal of the vehicle fleet, because what is clear is that vehicles over 20 years old will not be able to enter Colombian territory. The useful life of Colombian (public) transportation is 20 years,” he explained.
The Crossing Of Motorcycles Has Been Restored
This Tuesday, the crossing of motorcycles with Venezuelan and Colombian license plates was restored through the Atanasio Girardot international bridge after the caveats that were imposed on Monday afternoon by National Guard officials.
On the other hand, there was evidence of the return of Venezuelan families in Colombian taxis that had spent the December festivities in the sister country. They managed to stamp their passports in a few minutes, due to the low influx of citizens in Colombia Migration and Venezuela Migration offices.
Enith Alvarado, a Venezuelan who has been living in Medellín for more than 14 years told the La Patilla team, while she stamped her passport to return to Colombia, that she was surprised by “the high cost of living in Venezuela.”
“There is already everything (in Venezuela), the issue is that everything is “dollarized”, and it is even more expensive than in Medellín. This is terrible, life in Venezuela is much more expensive than in Colombia,” said Ms. Alvarado.
She also highlighted: “for me, it has been wonderful to cross by car because my 83-year-old mother always had to use a wheelchair, we lost the wheels of the suitcase on the bridge (Simón Bolívar), it is marvelous to cross by car again as we did it when we were kids.”
Javier Martínez, a Táchira native who returned to San Cristóbal on Tuesday, also expressed joy at being able to cross in his truck with his family, “we went (to Colombia) yesterday afternoon, we stayed in Cúcuta and today we are going back home.”
On the other hand, the Chavista Governor, Freddy Bernal, indicated that more than 10,000 private vehicles and more than 3,000 motorcycles have crossed the Atanasio Girardot bridge since its opening.
He would also have ordered security officials that the informal economy will not be allowed on the new international bridge, so the presence of “window cleaners, forklift drivers, peddlers, etc. will be prohibited so that it not be turned into a makeshift Persian bazar,” he pointed out.
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Read More: La Patilla – Colombia will not allow the entry from Venezuela of public transport units with more than 20 years of service
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