LTFRB to decide on fare hike petitions by end of July - report

MANILA, Philippines – The Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Monday said it would decide on the various fare hike petitions by the end of July. In a report in QTV’s Balitanghali, LTFRB Chairman Thompson Lantion was quoted as saying that he would be meeting with the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) board to present the fare increase requests. GMA reporter Claire Delfin said that among the petitions scheduled to be heard by the LTFRB is that from the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston). The jeepney transport group originally asked the LTFRB in October 2007 to increase the minimum jeepney fare to P8.50 from the previous P7.50 for the first four kilometers. The Piston was also asking that the per-succeeding-kilometer rate to go up to P1.50. Since the LTFRB already granted a 50-centavo provisional jeepney fare hike in May 2008, the minimum jeepney fare would only rise by 50 centavos if the LTFRB approves the request by the end of July. Piston secretary general George San Mateo, in a phone interview with GMANews.TV, reiterated that the fare hike petition they filed last year was a “nationwide and uniform fare adjustment," meaning all jeepney fares across the country will impose the same fare rate if their petition is approved. The minimum jeepney fare would all be placed at P8.50, San Mateo said. In Metro Manila, that would be a 50-centavo increase from the current P8, but in Cebu, that would be a P2 increase from the current P6.50 jeepney fare in the province. Aside from its fare hike petition, Piston is also pushing for the lifting of the Oil Deregulation Law and the suspension of the extended Value Added Tax (e-VAT) on petroleum products. Roberto Martin, national president of the Pasang Masda, meanwhile stressed that jeepney operators and drivers are the worst hit by the mounting pump prices, the television report added. Martin said that the income that jeepney drivers get to take home everyday has already plummeted from P400 to P200. Also awaiting review by the LTFRB is the fare hike petition by various taxi operators and drivers, including that of the Association of Taxi Operators of Metro Manila (ATOMM). ATOMM president Leonor Naval said it was about time for a fare increase in taxis, adding that a fare hike for taxi was last imposed four years ago. The group of taxi operators is seeking a P10 increase in their flag down rate. Naval said that that LTFRB should allow for the taxi fare increase, in consideration of all taxi drivers who, she said, are only left with a P300 daily income in July, down from the previous month’s P500 to P600. The LTFRB will also be reviewing a fare hike petition asking the minimum fare for passenger buses plying Metro Manila to be increased by P1, and the per succeeding kilometer to be adjusted by 45 centavos. Eleanor Santos, president of Mega Manila Operators and Drivers Alliance, for her part said her transport group would accept any fare hike that would be approved by the LTFRB. Global economic crisis For their part, a number of ranking government officials expressed fear that stripping the e-VAT from the prices of petroleum products would adversely affect the local economy. House Speaker Prospero Nograles was quoted in a radio report as saying that lifting the said revenue measure would not lift us from the “global economic crisis." Nograles said that exempting the transport sector from the e-VAT might make the government “popular" in the eyes of the public, but government programs slated for implementation would experience setbacks. Secretary to the Cabinet Ricardo Saludo was quoted in a separate radio report as saying that without the said tax, the local currency would weaken against the US dollar, also causing interest rates to soar. In offering her two cents worth of advice, Sen. Loren Legarda said that jeepney drivers should first be required to plant at least five plants each before their fare hike request should be granted. The report said that Lantion acknowledged Legarda’s suggestion and added it would be a good idea to get transport groups involved in efforts to save the environment. - GMANews.TV