It's almost impossible to rent a car on Aruba..there's only a very limted supply..the government strictly limits the number of rent-a-cars on the island..why don't they bring in more....supposedly it's for safety, so a bunch of drunk tourists don't kill everyone..the real rewason..one of the best jobs on the island is taxi driver..they have a huge lobby...no rent a cars means you need a cab to go anywheres..so..
No doubt it's some of what you say but it is a small island. More cars equals the needs for more & larger parking lots and roadways to handle the traffic...a big waste of expensive real estate. I've read on travel sites that most of the cabs in Aruba are owner operated...and that's a better situation for Aruba & Arubans than turning the business over to some foreign-owned car rental business & turning Aruban entreprenuers into employees. And, it should be noted that the fares are based per trip, not per passenger...and that indicates to me that they want to minimize the # of cars on the road. Look at NYC...lots of the people who live there don't own a car & don't know how to drive.
Go to any of the hotels at night..out on the beach..about 8PM..when all the tourists are starting to come down to go off to dinner around the island..into the capital..You can wait an hour for a cab..unless you've made "arrangements" in advance.. ( i.e. a big tip) with the doorman to have one waiting for you..the cost of taking a cab back and forth 5 nights is far more than the cost of renting a car for the week..99% of those tourists would rent a car if one were available..
Also, by fixing the fare on trip instead of passengers, that just goes to prove that it isn't about money. Otherwise the fares would be based on passenger and not the trip itself. In other words 3 people could split the fare. jmo
I think its more about trying to keep the island free of clutter and pollution. Shoot look at places like Makinac Island. They don't allow motorized vehicles at all. Just bicycles and horses.