Venturo SL, part of Grupo Denibus, which runs the bus line in Jávea (Xàbia), says the regional Conselleria (a department of the Generalitat) has notified it that the current arrangement for the service ends on 31 December 2026. Until that date, the company says it will keep running the line as normal.
Jávea's bus service is a single line linking three population centres in the municipality. The journey takes roughly an hour. According to Venturo SL, the Conselleria concession for the line expired in 2014, and the company has operated it for the twelve years since. It says the line loses money and receives no financial compensation from either the Conselleria or Jávea Town Hall. It adds that renewing the fleet takes several years to pay for itself. Until it knows when the town hall's new tender will be published, it says it cannot take on that investment.
The issue came up at the full council meeting (pleno) on Thursday 29 October, where it was raised by Compromís councillor Carme Català. The councillor for mobility, Juan Ortolà (Ciudadanos por Jávea), said the new service will not start soon. He said two to three years will pass before the new tender is announced. By his account, a similar process in Dénia took six years. He expects Jávea's to be shorter because of the particular features of the future route.
Mr Ortolà also indicated that the company's statement about stopping at the end of 2026 is exaggerated, and said that, in his words, the company will continue to operate.
The town hall has signed a contract with the same firm that worked for Dénia, first for technical assistance and then to prepare the pliegos (tender specifications) for the future contract. The council wants to base its plans on the model recently introduced in Dénia, which has launched its first municipal bus. Mr Ortolà said Jávea representatives visited Dénia to study how it works.
On the crowding of recent days, Mr Ortolà said the large bus went into a workshop for repairs on Monday 26 October, so an 18-seat minibus had to be used. Venturo SL rejects the claim that the line carries more passengers than its vehicles are permitted to. It says two vehicles serve the line, alternating according to demand: a minibus at quieter times and a larger bus on days and at times with more passengers. According to the minibus's technical data sheet, the company says, it is an intercity-type vehicle approved to carry standing passengers: 18 seated, 11 standing and one space for a passenger with reduced mobility. Passengers complain that the vehicles are cramped and have no air conditioning.
It is not clear who will run the line after 31 December, when the large bus will return to service, or when the tender will be published.