Tuk-tuk drivers occupy parking spaces for hours at Dubrovnik's busiest traffic point, and when they spot a parking attendant, they simply vanish. Mayor Franković also warns about aggressive cabrio buses turning into party buses.
Dubrovnik's Pile, already congested during the tourist season, faces a new problem. In addition to tourist buses and taxis, citizens increasingly complain about tuk-tuk drivers who occupy parking spaces for hours with their three-seaters, including those reserved for disabled persons and the passage to the motorcycle parking lot in Tiha.
A reader of Slobodna Dalmacija, who backed up his claims with photographs, poses a logical question: "If the owners of these vehicles book panoramic tours of Dubrovnik at Pile, what is the purpose of their vehicles being constantly parked? When a tour is booked, drivers can be called to come to Pile to pick up passengers, so only 3 minutes are needed."
Despite this, in practice, these vehicles "put down roots" at the city's busiest traffic point, creating additional congestion and disrupting traffic flow.
The City of Dubrovnik confirms they are aware of the problem but emphasize that constant supervision is impossible. "Tuk-tuk vehicles are not exempt from the 10-minute parking limit at the said parking spaces, nor is there a special privilege for this category of vehicles. The prescribed rules apply equally to all vehicles using these spaces," the city administration stated.
They add that attendants from the company Sanitat Dubrovnik d.o.o. regularly patrol and monitor the parking spaces and issue tickets for all vehicles that exceed the allowed time, but they also acknowledge the reality on the ground: "In practice, some drivers leave the parking space when they notice the attendant's arrival."
An aggravating circumstance is that Sanitat employees also perform other duties at the Pile plateau during their shift, so "it is not possible to ensure their constant presence at each individual parking space, nor to record every overstay immediately after the allowed 10 minutes expire." In addition to Sanitat, improper parking is also sanctioned by the traffic warden service and the Traffic Police.
The problem of improper stopping is not limited to tuk-tuk vehicles. Dubrovnik's mayor, Mato Franković, at the beginning of the tourist season, during a City Council discussion on amendments to the Decision on Tourist Bus Parking, warned about the "cabrio bus syndrome."
"There are those who operate as classic tourist agencies; they come to Pile, pick up and drop off guests, and there's no problem. But a syndrome of cabrio buses has emerged that illegally operate at Pile, camp there, stay for 45 minutes, pull people by the arm, and are very aggressive..." Franković said. Because of this, he also contacted Minister Oleg Butković, requesting the deployment of traffic inspectors.
The mayor particularly criticized the transformation of these vehicles into "party buses," noting that owners "make a lot of money selling drinks on the buses," which negatively affects the city's reputation and image. He praised the effects of the official platform Bus Webshop Dubrovnik, which enables online purchase of vouchers for bus stops in special traffic regime zones like Pile and Ploče.
The city administration also addressed the increasing presence of rental scooters stopping at Pile and elsewhere in the city. "As for motorcycles, it is allowed to park motorcycles and mopeds in all places where parking does not constitute a violation under the Road Traffic Safety Act," the City explained.
