Amid a nationwide fare increase that took effect on Oct. 3, transport tickets purchased online must also be discounted, according to Isabela Rep. Inno Dy.
“This is why mandated discounts should also be applied to tickets that are bought online,” he said.
Dy is batting for the passage of House Bill No. 1142 or the Student Fare Discount Act of 2022.
The measure seeks to amend Section 5 of Republic Act No. 11314, which entitles students to a 20-percent discount on domestic regular fares for all public transportation.
The law requires students to present their school identification card in person, which makes them unable to avail of the benefit when purchasing their tickets online, Dy lamented.
“Because of this, students could not avail of the discount should students reload their Beep cards, such as in purchasing plane tickets to go home to the province,” he said.
“This is an exception that doesn’t make sense, and disincentivizes the use of technology when in fact we must push for its more widespread adoption,” he added.
If passed, RA No. 11314 would read as follows: “SEC. 5. Student Fare Discount Privilege. – A student under this Act shall be entitled to a grant of 20% discount on domestic regular fares, upon personal presentation of their duly issued school identification cards or current validated enrollment form, supported by the prescribed government-issued identification document, subject to an appropriate verification mechanism to be provided in the implementing rules and regulations (IRR): Provided, That in the case of air public transportation utilities, the discount shall only apply to the base fare or the price of the ticket before taxes and costs for ancillary services.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board approved a P1 provisional increase in the minimum fare for the first four kilometers of travel in public utility jeepneys (PUJs), which hiked the minimum fare for traditional PUJ up to P12, and the modern PUJ up to P14.
It approved the increase in minimum fare for city buses by P2 for the first five kilometers — P13 for the regular buses, and P15 for the air-conditioned buses. For provincial buses, the minimum fare rose by P2.
The flagdown rate of taxis was hiked to P45, and P40 in the Cordillera Administrative Region. Rio N. Araja