Lisbon, Nov. 6, 2025 (Lusa) - Rede Expressos said on Thursday that it would keep new operators from entering the Sete Rios Terminal in Lisbon, where it holds the concession, stressing that it has reached the limit of its operational and physical capacity.
FlixBus today estimated losses of €12.5 million in 2024 due to the impediment to access to the Sete Rios terminal, despite a regulator's decision recognising the multinational's access, which has yet to be applied.
"Rede Expressos, which holds the concession for the Sete Rios Bus Terminal, considers that access by new operators to this space, under the current conditions, is not viable and would jeopardise the safety of passengers, workers and property," it said in a statement, stressing that it maintains the refusal of access to new services, namely those proposed by FlixBus and BlaBlaCar.
According to the manager of Rede Expressos, Martinho Costa, the Sete Rios terminal is at the limit of its operational and physical capacity and is therefore unable to accommodate more timetables and operators without jeopardising the safety and quality of the service.
As he explained, the terminal has no additional space for circulation or secure car parking.
FlixBus proposed introducing 96 new timetables, and BlaBlaCar, another 12.
The company said that, at peak times, the terminal experienced "severe congestion", with vehicles parked irregularly.
On the other hand, it cited a study by the Instituto Superior Técnico, carried out by Carlos Oliveira Cruz, which concludes that the terminal has already reached its operational limits and that any increase in load is inadvisable.
Added to this is the fact that the terminal no longer fully complies with Infraestruturas de Portugal standards, particularly for connections to the North-South axis.
"The Sete Rios terminal was conceived as a provisional solution in 2004 and is now highly out of step with demand, despite the investments made in this public asset over decades by the company," it added.
The company also said that, according to the law, when the terminal is sold out, an alternative must be indicated, and that is Gare do Oriente, where “only around 30% of its lines” are currently used by FlixBus.
Rede Expressos appealed the Mobility and Transport Authority (AMT) decision ordering the terminal to be opened to new operators.
"The current impediment is in no way of a commercial nature, but exclusively of a technical and safety nature," he said.
However, he emphasised that other operators in the Portuguese market have not invested in their own infrastructure and support teams, "limiting themselves to concentrated operations for certain tourist flows".
These operators, according to Rede Expressos, have significant resources available for media actions and campaigns that seek to convey an image of victimisation, without any correspondence with the operational reality on the ground.
The company also noted that FlixBus' strategy in countries like Germany, France and Italy has been to try to dominate the entire market, "with the consequent control of prices and a reduction in the diversity of the offer".
FlixBus, which entered Portugal in 2017, had a turnover of €90.6 million in 2024, so the estimated losses from what it calls the “illegal blockade” of access to the Sete Rios terminal, “the largest and most important” in the country, represent almost 15%.
"This represents huge economic damage for FlixBus, but it also affects passengers, who are forced to travel in worse conditions than they could," said Pablo Pastega, accusing Rede Expressos (majority owned by the Barraqueiro group) of "monopoly".
In 2023, FlixBus filed a formal complaint with the AMT for refusing access to the Sete Rios terminal, operated by Rede Nacional de Expressos. In May, the regulator ordered fair and non-discriminatory access to that infrastructure.
PE/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
