Public transportation drivers of La Paz hold 24-hour strike over poor-quality fuel

Record ID: 2369610

  • Title: Public transportation drivers of La Paz hold 24-hour strike over poor-quality fuel
  • Date: 25th March 2026
  • Summary: EL ALTO, BOLIVIA (MARCH 25, 2026) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF VEHICLES AT AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR WORKSHOP VARIOUS OF MECHANIC, EDDY APAZA, SHOWING ENGINE COMPONENTS DAMAGED BY POOR QUALITY GASOLINE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MECHANIC, EDDY APAZA, SAYING: "This problem has been happening since December or November when cars started arriving (to the workshop). Now visits to our workshop with
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Strike drivers fuel poor-quality public transportation
  • Location: EL ALTO AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA
  • City: EL ALTO AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA
  • Country: Bolivia
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,South America / Central America,Civil Unrest
  • Reuters ID: LVA003735625032026RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Public transport drivers in La Paz choked major arteries of the Bolivian city with dozens of roadblocks on Wednesday (March 25), disrupting commerce and forcing commuters to walk long distances as a 24‑hour strike over delayed compensation payments for fuel‑related vehicle damage brought the city to a standstill.
    Back in February, the state-owned company Bolivian State Oil Fields (YPFB) reported that rubber and manganese residues had been found in gasoline storage tanks, causing an imbalance in the fuel’s composition.
    On Tuesday (March 24), the company said it had paid more than 1.5 million bolivianos ($217,000) to over 1,000 drivers who reported damage to their vehicles allegedly caused by the use of destabilized gasoline. The effort would continue in the next days, President of YPFB Yussef Akly Flores said.
    Drivers participating in the strike argue that the damages by the poor-quality fuel, which was distributed earlier this year, threaten their livelihoods, and are seeking reimbursement for mechanical failures they say were caused by it.
    Union leaders warned they could extend the protest indefinitely if President Rodrigo Paz does not meet with them directly, saying they no longer trust his ministers.
    The blockades sealed off much of central La Paz, with police limiting their operations to keeping a narrow flow of traffic open between La Paz and the neighbouring city of El Alto via the main highway. Only ambulances, emergency vehicles and transport heading to El Alto’s international airport were allowed through.
    (Production: Santiago Limachi, Sergio Limachi, Monica Machicao, Gloria Lopez)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2026. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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