Carlos Moedas raised the issue at the Portuguese Tourism Summit on Monday, 28 September.

He told the gathering that Lisbon does face tourist pressure, but said the problem is concentrated in particular parts of the city rather than spread evenly across the capital.

The mayor’s concern is partly about the experience on the streets.

As RTP reported, he criticised some ride-hailing drivers for failing to follow traffic rules and said some tuk-tuk operators do not invest enough in the quality of their tours or know the city’s history well enough. He asked Economy Minister Manuel Castro Almeida for national action to limit ride-hailing services in Lisbon.

Authorised areas

The city has already taken some steps.

Lisbon reached an agreement with Uber and Bolt earlier this year on areas where drivers cannot start or end trips. Tuk-tuks have also faced tighter circulation rules and more inspections. Moedas is now asking the government to go further on the number of ride-hailing vehicles.

He also argued that the answer is not to turn visitors away from Lisbon.

Tourism supports jobs across hotels, restaurants, shops, transport and cultural venues, he said.

His aim is to attract visitors while making the busiest neighbourhoods work better for the people who live there.

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