Bolt reveals that he already has over 500 taxi drivers registered on the platform

Oito years after the beginning of the regulation of this type of transport, Law No. 59/2026 – which amends the previous Law No. 45/2018, came into force in the midst of some dispute, especially by controversial positions regarding the possibility of taxis doing TVDE service.

In statements to Lusa, Mário de Morais, TVDE Director-General of Bolt Portugal, stressed that the first days of law enforcement “have been marked by a strong willingness to adapt by operators”, although he acknowledged that “some regulatory doubts related, for example, to the holographic seal and other operational procedures persist”.

Still, the person responsible believes that most of the measures will be fully operational in the coming weeks.

“ There are less and less doubts now. Both drivers and taxi drivers and we, of course, together with the regulator have been able to clarify. Now it is a matter of waiting (...) at this moment, what we are doing is effectively collecting all documentation that exists, for example, from taxi drivers. We already have more than 500 registered with us, so we are just waiting for the context to start operating ", stressed.

Mário de Morais considers that the opening of platforms to the taxi sector is an important step towards increasing the mobility options available to citizens and promoting greater complementarity between different modes of transport.

Regarding the TVDE itself, Mário de Morais said that the new law brought to the sector “a series of changes”, among which highlighted the issue of commodity contracts, stressing that it was also necessary to clarify operators and drivers, remembering, however, that the “sector is very dynamic and flexible” and, as such, “quickly adapting”.

For the responsible, the new legislation came to recognize the importance of TVDEs in Portuguese society and the mobility of citizens, having been built upon what was a law “already with good foundations, [but] needed some clarifications”.

Asked about the increase in fuel prices and the impact for the sector, Mário de Morais recalled the initiative already launched previously of fuel valleys, advanced that will be again launched precisely on Mobility Day.

“ But what actually happens is that this is a sector, once again, very flexible, so the transition to the electric vehicle is getting faster and faster. We are waiting to finish this year close to 60% of electric vehicles, most working on the platform ", recognized.

According to Mário de Morais, after the rise in fuel prices, the end of 2027 could bring Bolt in Portugal closer to a “mainly electric” fleet.

The new law on the TVDE regime, the acronym that began to designate paid passenger transport in electronic vehicles, entered into force on September 1, and, among the main changes, became part of the taxi sector.

Among the major changes in the law that is now in force, the most contested one was the integration of taxis, which can now be “registered for TVDE activity, provided that they meet the requirements for vehicles affected by this activity and are registered with a licensed electronic platform manager”.

Both the Mobility and Transport Authority (AMT) and the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT) have expressed their opposition to such integration and have argued in parliament, before the law was passed, that the two schemes (taxi and TVDE) are distinct.