TIJUANA.- On May 30th, 2015, a group of residents living along the stretch of highway to the south of the Playas de Tijuana toll booth plan to gather at the toll booth to protest the authorities' unwillingness to grant an exemption. The protest is yet another in a series of actions planned by the group to rally for exemption from a toll fee that they claim is not only unfair, but also unconstitutional. Other measures have included a petition which garnered close to 1,500 signatures and was addressed to various government officials.

Organizers from the sixteen affected neighborhoods located along the highway south of the toll booth claim that they should not be charged to travel to and from Tijuana — a city that they property taxes to reside in —given that no alternative free road exists. Should residents wish to travel to Tijuana without paying a toll, they would have to travel first many kilometers north to Rosarito in order to once again head south on the free road to Tijuana.

Organizers also protest that, when taking into account the distance, this is the most expensive toll fee in the country. The stretch of highway of approximately 18.5 kilometers charges a $30 peso toll, which means that residents are charged approximately 2 pesos per traveled kilometer. Many residents must pay the toll multiple times a day in order to get to and from work, and to take their children to and from school and other activities. Even with the 50% discount concession, some residents claim they pay up to 450 pesos a week per household.

The Playas de Tijuana tollbooth has operated for more than thirty years, and another argument presented is that it has long since paid off the original investment which the toll was intended to for. The toll road and toll booth is a federal concession administered by authorities located in Mexico City, which makes it difficult for organizers to attract the attention and interest of the decision makers who are so far away and out of touch with the local community.

A recent referendum submitted to the Senate proposes to establish privileges for residents who live near toll booths, by requiring that the federal toll concessions establish "tariff schemes or exemptions for residents". Organizers fear that because the option exists, the current 50% exemption will remain in place if this bill passes, having little effect on the status quo. Attorneys for the group are currently drafting an "amparo" to address this legislative omission, but state that this is a complicated legal procedure that takes a lot of time to prepare.

Last month, organizers were scheduled to visit with Gilberto Limon Chavez, the General Director of Banobras — the National Public Services and Public Works Bank — to present their argument. Organizers were very disappointed by the reception, as the meeting was postponed for several hours and attended to by a different functionary than that scheduled with. The replacement person they met with had no knowledge of the group's requests as he had not read over the preliminary documentation sent over weeks in advance detailing the request. The group regrets the fact that they traveled all the way to Mexico City for this meeting and were met with such little interest and respect from federal officials.

Of the estimated 12,000 residents who live in this area, about 1,500 have submitted paperwork to receive the 50% concession, and approximately the same amount have been involved in the exemption movement. The organizers have asked federal authorities that an alternative to granting the exemption to all residents would be to grant the exemption to those who have already applied for the concession.

On May 13, 2015, organizers met with Lic. Bernardo Padilla, Tijuana's Undersecretary to the Mayor to continue to discuss the request to allow residents to be exempt from the tollbooth charge. The group argues that Tijuana's city government should be spearheading this movement's cause, given that it is in the best interests of a large segment of its residents, who pay taxes to reside in a city that they cannot travel to without paying a toll fee each time. As their representatives, they are asking Tijuana's city government to take this issue up with federal authorities.

The protest will take place Saturday, May 30 from noon to 3pm at the Playas de Tijuana Toll Booth. Organizers are urging residents to show up, and are asking that they carpool in order to prevent congestion. Foreign residents are reminded that it is against Mexican law for foreigners to protest, but are invited to continue to follow this movement and support in other ways by visiting their site.

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