An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons Buenos Aires, Apr 13 (EFE).- Ride-sharing service Uber, which has started operating in the Argentine capital, is "failing to follow regulations" and providing a service "that is illegal," the Buenos Aires city government said. Uber rolled out its alternative to traditional taxi service on Tuesday, prompting officials to warn that it would be subje...

Android Auto Android Auto, a standard for automobile/smartphone integration developed by tech giant Google, is now available to drivers in Costa Rica. This technology standard allows drivers with devices powered by the Android mobile operating system to connect them to the dashboard head units to their cars for the purpose of controlling functions such as GPS navigation with Google Maps, tr...

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford at City Hall in Toronto, Nov. 13, 2013. (Reuters OMX) Rob Ford, the controversial former mayor of  the city of Toronto, Canada died Tuesday at the age of 46 following a battle with a rare form of cancer. The former mayor of Canada’s largest city became known for his problems with illegal drugs and alcohol. In November 2013 Ford admitted to smoking crack cocaine after ...

Source: Green Motion Costa Rica  London, United Kingdom - 10 March 2016 -- British Airways from the 27th of April 2016 will be flying a direct route from the United Kingdom (London Gatwick Airport) to San Jose (SJO) in the beautiful country of Costa Rica. These direct flights are scheduled to take place twice a week during the summer and then increasing to three flights a week for those cra...

(Photo courtesy of Toyota) While most countries in the region have seen a significant slowdown in new vehicle sales, the sale of new model-year vehicles in Costa Rica increased 24.9 percent in 2015, according to the organizing committee of Expomovil 2016, an annual car show that brings together the country’s largest dealers offering their biggest discounts of the year to thousands of car buyer...

A consortium comprising Ineco-ACCIONA Ingeniería and the Costa Rica Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MOPT) have signed an agreement for the provision of consulting services for the administrative, technical, legal and environmental management of the Transport Infrastructure Program (PIT) launched by the Costa Rica Government. Its objective is to modernise road and port infrastructures in th...

  "Força Nacional de Segurança - Luziânia" by Fábio Rodrigues Pozzebom/ABr - http://www.agenciabrasil.gov.br/media/imagens/2007/10/21/1625FP4021.jpg/view. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 br via Wikimedia Commons Sao Paulo, Feb 28 (EFE).- About 1,500 taxi drivers took to the streets of Sao Paulo on Sunday to demand a peaceful debate on ride-sharing service Uber and other transportation compani...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Common6 Uber, the personal transportation solution centered on the use of a mobile app, recently announced a new service in Costa Rica. Despite its controversial illegal status, and despite being the recipient of a Presidential warning, Uber continues to operate and expand across Costa Rica. The new Uber feature is called uberXL, and it aims to attract pa...

(Photo courtesy of Toyota) The director for distribution systems at the National Power and Light Company (CNFL), Allan Blanco promised Costa Rica lawmakers last week that CNFL could quickly deploy the necessary infrastructure to support a bill before the Legislative Assembly that proposes significant incentives for motorists who choose to purchase electric and hybrid vehicles. Appearing bef...

Korando 4WD. Wikimedia Commons Rio Segundo, Alajuela, February 12, 2016 (Newswire.com) - Solid Car Rental is pleased to announce expansion of  their fleet in order to provide their customers with the vehicle they need while traveling in Costa Rica. This fleet now consists of 2015 and 2016 vehicles that will provide patrons with the newest vehicles available on the market. Solid Car Rental h...

(Photo courtesy of Toyota) Members of the Legislative Assembly’s Commission on Government and Administration heard arguments in favor of Legislative Bill 19744, known as the Incentive and Promotion of Electric Transport Act, this week. The bill proposes significant incentives for motorists who choose to purchase electric and hybrid vehicles, including a complete exemption from import duty a...

Source: Marcopolo Flickr Marcopolo S.A. Press Release - Marcopolo has just signed a new contract for the export of buses to some of the main transport operators in Costa Rica. The vehicles with different characteristics, will be used for urban, tourism and interstate transportation. "For a long time we have dedicated ourselves to broaden our bus sales, mainly to other Latin American countri...

Source: Mercedes-Benz By Julio Cesar Rivas Detroit, Jan 12 (EFE).- More than 40 vehicles will make their debuts at the North American International Auto Show, or NAIAS, the most important event of its kind in the United States and one of the most prominent in the world, in Detroit. The new offerings at the show, which opens its doors on Monday, will be introduced over the first two days,...

Wikimedia Commons A pair of 1963 Washington, D.C. license plates, which were on the limousine carrying John F. Kennedy and his wife Jackie on the fateful day of his assassination on November 22, 1963, were sold at a recent week. The asking price was $40,000, but the final sale price was $100,000, sold to an anonymous Kennedy memorabilia collector. $80,000 went to the seller, Jane Walker, and $...

United States Department of Justice Press Release - Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that Dr. Michael Brandner, 67, of Anchorage, Alaska, was convicted today of four counts of wire fraud and three counts of tax evasion by a federal jury sitting in Anchorage, Alaska. According to the indictment and evidence introduced at trial, shortly after his wife filed for divorce i...

British actor Daniel Craig performs during the shooting of the 24th James Bond movie 'Spectre' in Rome, Italy. EFE Since James Bond first hit the silver screen back in 1962 with Dr. No, the 007 secret agent has had us both shaken and stirred. Between mass killings (strictly on behalf of her Majesty’s Secret Service, of course) and regularly dancing with death, Bond always finds time to kick ba...

Wikimedia Commons Washington, Oct 26 (EFE).- Ford Motor Co. denied Monday that it decided to shift production from Mexico to the United States as a result of criticism from real estate magnate and Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump. "Ford has not spoken with Mr. Trump, nor have we made any changes to our plans," a company spokesperson said. "We decided to move the F-650 and F-750 ...

SoftonITG San Jose, Costa Rica (PRWEB) October 27, 2015 - As seen on a special news report, a technology and software development firm located in San Jose, Costa Rica, announced today that the Company has launched its location-based transportation App, CETATI. Thanks to Appsr, there is a global disruption growing within the public transportation industry. SoftonITG launches transport App CE...

Source: Flickr Commons TechSci Research Press Release -- Burnaby, British Columbia - According to TechSci Research report, “Costa Rica Tyre Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2020”, the tyre market in Costa Rica is forecast to grow during 2015-20, on account of expanding vehicle fleet and upcoming government reforms to boost growth in construction and transportation sector. Bridgestone Tyre ...

Source: Indian Sao Paulo, Oct 8 (EFE).- Domestically manufactured electric motorcycles and the arrival in Brazil of U.S. brand Indian highlighted the opening day of the Two Wheels Trade Show in Sao Paulo, South America's biggest motor-bike event. The first day of the biennial fair was highlighted by new scooter designs and features, iconic American motorcycle brand Indian's entry into the B...

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica - Sept. 27, 2015 - PRLog -- The Costa Rican Car Rental Association (ACAR) announced radical changes to its organization in September 2015 to combat the tarnished image of the industry in the country with sweeping changes to its structure. ACAR is relaunching itself as a self-regulatory body with the main purpose of providing a neutral mediatory service between customers and...

Santiago, Sep 23 (EFE).- Soki, Chile's first electric car, with room for two people and a 60-kilometer (37-mile) range between charges, will be introduced with a $12,000 price tag, one of the vehicle's creators said. "This electric car has room for a passenger along with the driver, and it is an update of vehicles we designed previously," Daniel Pavez, one of Soki's designers, told EFE. "It is ...

Wikimedia Commons (PRWEB UK) -- Green Motion, the low CO2 car rental company, has officially launched their Autumn Sale to coincide with their 8th Anniversary. Customers can now receive great savings on their car hire in all of Green Motion’s worldwide locations. Green Motion has locations in over 20 countries including Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, F...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons The Executive Board of the Public Transportation Council (Spanish initials: CTP) of Costa Rica has determined that the controversial private transportation service Uber does not conform to standing law in our country. The resolution by CTP comes after weeks of debate and protest from the taxicab labor unions and lawmakers. This determination makes...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons Sao Paulo, Sep 9 (EFE).- Taxi drivers here in Brazil's largest city blocked traffic on Wednesday to protest against Uber, the app-based private driver service that has triggered controversy and legal disputes around the world. The cabbies gathered in front of Sao Paulo city hall, where the councilors are scheduled to vote on Wednesday for a second...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons On Friday afternoon, the controversial private transportation mobile app Uber began operating in Costa Rica with a stern warning by President Luis Guillermo Solis Rivera, who explained that his administration will increase vigilance on the roadways for the purpose of catching and issuing infractions to Uber drivers. According to a news report file...

Electric BYD Qin taxi. Wikimedia Commons Montevideo, Aug 15 (EFE).- Four electric cars have been incorporated for the first time into this capital's taxi fleet, part of the Uruguayan government's efforts to promote renewable energies.   The transportation sector accounts for 29 percent of the country's energy consumption, Industry, Energy and Mining Minister Carolina Cosse said, add...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons San Jose (The Costa Rica Star) and Mexico City (EFE), July 29.- Mexico City taxi drivers staged a protest on Wednesday against the recent approval of private transportation services offered via smartphone apps, while police are investigating attacks on Uber drivers in the past few hours. In Costa Rica, the National Forum of taxicab drivers assembl...

Wikimedia Commons Washington, Jul 24 (EFE).- Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said Friday it is conducting a voluntary safety recall affecting 1.4 million vehicles in the United States after two hackers remotely controlled some functions of a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. The automaker said in a statement that "the recall aligns with an ongoing software distribution that insulates connected vehicles from re...

TomTom device. Wikimedia Commons SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Esri User Conference – TomTom (TOM2) today announces the addition of navigable maps for thirteen new countries. TomTom’s global map database now covers over 45.6 million kilometers and 4.3 billion people worldwide, and features full navigable coverage for 134 countries. “The addition of nearly 3 million kilometers of roads in one ...

Source: Discovery Miami, Jul 9 (EFE).- The Discovery en Español television channel starting July 13 will air the "Cuban Chrome" docu-series about classic automobiles, filmed exclusively in Cuba and narrated by Cuban-American actor William Levy, the company announced Thursday. The production explores the culture of vintage automobiles on the Caribbean island through "the men and women who pu...

A tracking device installed in a vehicle stolen from an expat resident from the United States helped law enforcement agents take down a den of thieves located in the southern suburbs of San Jose. According to a news report filed by Patricia Duran of daily tabloid Diario Extra, a 37-year old man is in custody for his alleged role in this larcenous ring. As previously reported by The Costa Rica S...

Source: Flickr Commons UPDATE: Daily tabloid Diario Extra reports that the 46-year old expat resisted the carjacking and was shot during a struggle that occurred outside the vehicle. An expat from the United States by the last name of Morehead sustained a gunshot wound and was rushed to the hospital after an apparent carjacking in Costa Rica.  According to a news report published by online ...

Pixabay Public Domain The Court of Appeals for the Second Judicial Circuit of San Jose recently upheld a prison sentence for the Mayor of Coronado, a municipality located in the eastern exurbs of the capital city of Costa Rica. According to court records in this case, former Mayor Leonardo Herrera Sanchez and a female companion used a municipal vehicle to travel to the Cascada Azul (Blue Falls...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons Mexico City, May 25 (EFE).- Hundreds of taxi drivers in Mexico City protested Monday against Uber and the authorities failure to do anything about what they consider an "illegal" service - which the U.S. company answered by offering free rides to customers throughout the day.   Groups of taxi drivers from different parts of the city gather...

Our Lady of the Angels Basilica in Cartago (SMART PARKING Press Release) On May 13, Cartago made history by following suit and becoming the first Smart City in Costa Rica with the launch of the “Cartago Historico Digital” project. The project has been developed jointly by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Telecommunications (Micitt) and the Municipality of Cartago with investments fro...

Washington, May 19 (EFE).- Japanese auto parts maker Takata agreed to recall more than 33 million vehicles in the United States, acknowledging that the air bags it installed in them are defective and could cause serious injury to motorists. The U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Tuesday at a Washington press conference that Takata has a...

AutoShine Costa Rica With car culture rapidly growing in Costa Rica, the number of luxury automobiles has greatly increased in the last few years. As a result of this trend, vehicle owners are becoming more interested in aesthetics as well as in systems that can augment their driving experience in terms of entertainment, safety, information, and comfort. In other nations where car culture h...

Source: Becky Stern, Flickr Commons Washington, May 12 (EFE).- Google's self-driving cars have had 11 "minor" accidents in their six years of trials in California, the U.S. multinational said, a statistic that it prizes as proof of the cars' safety. "If you spend enough time on the road, accidents will happen whether you're in a car or a self-driving car. Over the 6 years since we started t...

File photo According to field reports filed by the forensic section of the Office of Judicial Investigations (Spanish initials: OIJ), a 67-year old man from the United States passed away from massive trauma sustained after a tragic road traffic accident in Costa Rica. The crash reportedly took place in the Osa Peninsula, which is located in the southern Pacific region of Costa Rica. More sp...