MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Thursday assured both the transport groups and the commuting public that it would come up with fare adjustments that would be acceptable to them as it started deliberating on the fare hike petitions.
LTFRB Chairman Vigor Mendoza II, acting on the directive from Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Giovanni Lopez to recompute the appropriate fare adjustments based on pending petitions, made sure that the positions of various stakeholders would be considered.
The LTFRB reiterated it has started deliberating on the fare hike petitions filed by five major transport groups which have raised concerns about a spike in their operational costs due to the series of big-time increases in the prices of petroleum products.
“We are already reviewing and discussing all the pending petitions for fare hike and as per instruction by Secretary Banoy (Lopez’ moniker), we have to come up with the recommendation in the soonest possible time,” Mendoza said in a statement emailed to The Manila Times.
The fare hike petitions cover passenger jeepneys, passenger buses, UV (utility vehicle) express, taxis and motorcycle taxis.
The petitioners were Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Mga Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (PISTON), Metro Comet Transport Service Cooperative, UV Express National Alliance of the Philippines, United Transportation Coalition of the Philippines, and Manibela.
“The goal is to come up with the fare adjustments for each public utility vehicle sector that are acceptable to each of them, as well as the commuting public and other stakeholders,” said Mendoza, a lawyer.
The top LTFRB official said that various considerations would be highly considered during the deliberation including the inflationary effects and the capability of the commuters to pay for the adjusted fare hikes.
As part of the protocol, other stakeholders and government agencies are consulted before the recommendation of the LTFRB is submitted to DOTr, Mendoza added.
