Wednesday, July 09, 2008 Fares for PUJs, buses, taxis up
COMMUTERS will soon have to pay more if they take either a public utility jeepney (PUJ) or a taxi, after a fare adjustment was approved yesterday. Only the lack of paperwork kept the fare increase from taking effect immediately.
In Central Visayas, a PUJ ride will now cost P7.50 for the first five kilometers while a taxi ride will be P10 more costly.
For taxis, passengers will need to pay P10 in addition to the fare shown on the meter, said Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Chairman Thompson Lantion.
There will be “no increase in the flagdown rate and for every succeeding 300 meters. No additional (charge) for the waiting time also,” he said.
Government approved the fare adjustments after 18 rounds of oil price increases so far this year, which have raised pump prices of diesel by as much as 50 percent since January.
The adjusted fare rates were set after the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) board approved yesterday the LTFRB’s proposal to increase the minimum fare.
LTFRB Executive Director Manuel Mahipos, however, said in a separate interview that drivers cannot yet implement the new fare rates as the LTFRB en banc still has to convene as a quasi-judicial body and issue an order fixing the new rates.
“The order itself has to be issued yet. Prior to that clearance from Neda and President Arroyo, we conducted consultations from the consumers group and the riding public,” Mahipos said.
LTFRB 7 Director Romulo Bernardes, for his part, said that once the order will come out, his office will issue tariff matrices, for which jeepney operators shall pay P500 for each unit.
When the LTFRB granted a P0.50 provisional fare increase last May 21 and another P0.50 last June 30, Bernardes only issued a “notice.” No fees were required then.
While the adjustment applies to all public utility vehicles in the country, the amounts are varied.
In a teleconference from Malacańang, Lantion said the P1 and P10 fare adjustment for jeepneys and taxis, respectively, will be implemented nationwide. The P1 increase for non-aircon buses will cover only those in Metro Manila.
The minimum fare for PUJs in Metro Manila will now be P9 for the first four kilometers and an additional 25 centavos for every succeeding kilometer.
Non-aircon buses in Metro Manila will charge P10 for the first five kilometers and an additional 20 centavos for every succeeding kilometer. Aircon buses are also expected to raise their fare by 20 percent.
Metro Cebu drivers, however, are demanding a uniform minimum fare rate nationwide. (EOB/Sunnex)
