MADRID — Times are hard in much of Spain, but down south it is getting serious: Court clerks are reduced to forgoing taxis and catching a bus when they have to serve a summons.
The government of Spain’s Andalusia region says it will save two thirds of its yearly cab budget by having clerks rough it on public transport as they deliver court papers to plaintiffs and defendants.
Court officers have been furious since Andalusian Justice Minister Begona Alvarez ushered in the austerity measure two weeks ago. On Thursday, she promised some flexibility, saying taxis are OK for getting to out-of-the-way places “like the jail in Seville,” the region’s biggest city, but otherwise she is standing fast to her decision.
Spain’s court system is famously backlogged, with many courts relying largely on paper for their filing systems. People often must wait several years for rulings from judges.
The central government unveiled Friday a plan to hire more judges, set up more courthouses and buy more computers.
But progress will take time and for now Andalusia’s clerks will stay on the bus.
Francisco Rueda, a court clerk and leader of a union representing civil servants in the judicial branch, said he used to be able to do 20 judicial errands in a day, but having to take the bus cuts that down to seven or eight.
“We are often dismissed as pampered for taking taxis. But it is not about taking taxis. It is about having an efficient mode of transport,” he told The Associated Press on Friday.
Andalusia’s 1,500 court clerks feel powerless, he said.
People must now wait even longer for their day in court, or even to get out of jail when he is delivering a judge’s order to free an inmate, he said.
“The time that I take in getting that order to the prison is time that that person is denied freedom,” Rueda said.
