The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) will study the call of transport groups to charge an additional P1 to P2 to commuters during rush hour carefully, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said Wednesday, saying the petition was “logical.”
This was as transport group Pasang Masda on Wednesday urged the LTFRB to schedule a hearing “at the earliest possible time” on their petition for a “surge fee” or fare surcharge during rush hours in Metro Manila.
Pasang Masda president Obet Martin cited the impact of recent fuel price hikes on the income of public utility vehicle drivers and operators.
“The LTFRB will carefully study that. Although we acknowledge the hardships of our drivers because of fuel price increase, we also need to balance its effect on commuters,” Bautista told reporters on the sidelines of the Philippine Coast Guard 121st founding anniversary.
“I think it’s a logical request because it’s true that the cost of their operations has increased,” he added.
Pasang Masda, the Alliance of Transport Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines (ALTODAP), and the Alliance of Concerned Transport Organization (ACTO) recently filed their petition before the LTFRB.
They asked the government to allow traditional and modern public utility jeepneys (PUJs) to charge an additional P1.00, and public utility buses (PUBs) an additional P2.00 during rush hour periods of 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., except on Sundays and national holidays.
The additional fares the groups are asking are on top of the respective approved minimum fares.
Last September, the LTFRB approved a P1.00 provisional increase in the minimum fare for the first four kilometers of travel in PUJs, bringing the minimum fare for traditional PUJs up to P12, and modern PUJs up to P14.
In filing the petition, the groups said the recent provisional increases, while helpful, were “not enough to alleviate the woes of public utility vehicle operators in the face of further fuel price hikes, higher operational costs caused by inflation, and also due to rush congestion in the city.”
On the possibility that the government’s “Libreng Sakay” would continue, Bautista reiterated that while there is no fund allocated for the free rides program under the Department of Transportation’s proposed P171.1-billion budget for next year, lawmakers have expressed support to continue it.
“It’s not included in the budget that was submitted to Congress, although a lot of lawmakers have said they will support the program. Hopefully, if the budget is passed, a certain amount will be given to Libreng Sakay,” Bautista said.
On the rush hour surcharge, Pasang Masda’s Martin said in a televised public briefing: “Traffic jams during rush hour are really heavy on oil consumption. Once approved, we will just implement the surge fee temporarily. And if oil prices normalize, we can file a petition to withdraw.”
The regulatory body earlier said it might no longer approve any additional fare hike this year.
Martin said the surcharge petition does not seek a fare increase. “This is just meant to serve as additional help. It will not be implemented the entire day; we will follow a window period. The surge fee will cover only 8 hours per day when traffic gets heavy,” he said.
But some transport groups said the surcharge might cause confusion among passengers and overburden them following recent fare hikes.
Martin said he respects the opinion of transport groups that disagree with their petition. But he also appealed for public understanding, saying the recent fare hikes were not enough to cushion the impact of high oil prices, elevated inflation, and rush hour congestion in the cities.
If the LTFRB rejects the plea for a surge fee, Pasang Masda plans to discuss with the DoTr other options to help drivers, including fuel subsidies and service contracting.
