The Association for Urban Mobility by Bicycle (MUBi) advanced this Tuesday with a precautionary measure in the Administrative and Fiscal Court of Porto, demanding the immediate suspension of the dismantling works on the Avenida da República cycle pathin Vila Nova de Gaia. The infrastructure, which connects Jardim do Morro to the D. João II station, was created last year and is being removed by order of the municipality’s president, Luís Filipe Menezes.
A municipal decision, announced on social media last Saturdaygenerated strong opposition by MUBi, which considers the act “null, illegal and ineffective”. The association argues that the cycle path was created under the Municipal Traffic Regulation approved in July 2024 and ratified by the Municipal Assembly on July 18, and emphasizes that any change or revocation of a regulation like this “requires the approval of the Municipal Assembly” — something that, according to MUBi, did not happen, thus constituting “a violation of legality and the separation of administrative powers”.
In addition to the legal issue, MUBi warns of the damage caused to sustainable mobility and road safety, as well as the possible waste of public funds. The cycle path was candidate for the NORTE 2030 program, and obtained European funding of around 98 thousand euros. Its removal could compromise the use of these resources, warns the association.
The cycle path, created in 2024 by previous president Eduardo Vítor Rodrigues, aimed to protect bicycle and scooter users and combat abusive parking. MUBi accuses the current president of the municipality, Luís Filipe Menezes, of inconsistency, recalling that the mayor promised, upon taking office, to advance 25 kilometers of cycle paths and begins by destroying an existing cycle path.
Expresso tried to get a reaction from the municipality, without success.