“Collective taxis”: Abbetnea proposes shared taxi service in Catania to

“Collective taxis”: a proposal for Catania

14 April 2026 – The extrahotel category association Abbetnea has put forward a proposal to launch a pilot collective taxi service in Catania to complement public transport, reduce private traffic and improve tourist mobility.

• Funding and costs: Abbetnea offers an initial co-financing of €50,000; annual operating costs are estimated at around €800,000.
• Vehicles and routes: 6-8 seat minivans with predetermined stops. Proposed routes include Librino–city center, San Giovanni Galermo–Piazza Stesicoro, Picanello–Cannizzaro Hospital, Nesima–Station and Gravina–Airport.
• Hours and frequency: limited service windows (07:00–09:00 and 17:00–19:00) with 10–15 minute frequencies.
• Fares and integration: fixed fares integrable with Amts tickets and a mobile app using a "Mobility as a Service" approach for bookings and tourist platform integration.
• Expected impacts: projected 15–20% reduction in private traffic, about 12,000 tons of CO2 saved annually and up to a 30% increase in daily rides for taxi drivers.
• Timeline and procedures: Abbetnea requests a municipal resolution within 60 days; next steps include a technical table with the municipality and taxi associations, training for roughly 200 drivers, app development and installation of smart stops. A pilot could start in 5–6 months on two routes and expand to five routes within two years.
• Regulatory framework: the plan is presented as compatible with the 2024 municipal taxi regulations, the metropolitan Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan and regional and national road-code provisions cited by the association.

The model has precedents in other Italian and European cities with high satisfaction rates; the proposal now awaits institutional approvals to move toward implementation.