Editing Transport in Cuba (section)

=== Hitchhiking and carpooling ===
[[File:Cuba, official hitchhiking and carpooling point.jpg|thumb|Official hitchhiking and carpooling point, Santiago de Cuba. The man in the yellow uniform stops a state-owned car to take passengers for a small fee]]
As a result of the "[[Special Period]]" in 1991 (a period of food and energy shortages caused by the loss of the Soviet Union as a trading partner), hitchhiking and carpooling became important parts of Cuba's transportation system and society in general.  In 1999, an article in ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine claimed "In Cuba[...] hitchhiking is custom. Hitchhiking is essential. Hitchhiking is what makes Cuba move."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20010126190900/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,36287,00.html#ixzz1Ch67vm4p Time (magazine)]</ref>