LRT-1, LRT-2 fares won’t increase soon, says LRTA

There will be no increase in the fares for Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 soon, the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) said on Thursday.

LRTA Administrator Hernando Cabrera said there were fare hike petitions for LRT-1 and LRT-2 but added that these would go through a “lengthy process of approval.”

“Fares in Lines 1 and 2 [on] status quo. We won’t increase tomorrow, next week, or next month. This will go through a long process and we will have to evaluate all factors, when it comes to fare adjustment,” Cabrera said at a press briefing.

Asked when the fare hike petitions were expected to be resolved, Cabrera said, “The 2015 increase took more than year before it was approved.”

He said Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC), the private operator of LRT-1, is seeking a boarding fee of P16 and a fare per kilometer of P1.50.

Cabrera declined to disclose the fare increase sought for LRT-2 but said it was due to inflation.

Cabrera said the fare adjustment petitions would have to be approved by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), the Department of Transportation (DOTr), and the Rail Regulatory Unit.

“We will add the [additional revenue] to rehab and upgrading. The LRT-2 system is 20 years old, we really have to upgrade a lot of things,” Cabrera said. —NB, GMA Integrated News