Thursday, November 13, 2008 LTFRB director to ask taxi operators: Stop collecting P10 add-on
LAND Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) 7 Director Romulo Bernardes will meet with leaders of Metro Cebu Taxi Operators Association (MCTOA) and the Cebu Integrated Transport Service Cooperative (Citrasco)to request them to remove the P10 taxi add-on fare.
Bernardes said the hearing of the petition for fare reduction was set by the LTFRB en banc for Dec. 3 yet but the price of LPG was again cut by P6 per liter yesterday.
In Manila, a radio report stated that a week after it approved the petition for provisional fare rollbacks for public utility jeepneys and buses, the LTFRB will soon order taxi operators to cut their flag-down rates by P10.
Radio dzBB’s Bernie Morales quoted LTFRB chair Thompson Lantion as saying the substantial rollbacks from oil firms should prompt taxi drivers to remove the P10 add-on rate for taxis.
Lantion said the LTFRB will soon finalize its order so it can announce the taxi fare reduction.
For her part, Alliance of Taxi Operators in Metro Manila (ATOMM) president Leonora Naval said her group will abide by LTFRB’s order.
On the other hand, MCTOA chairman Richard Cabucos, who earlier told reporters they will voluntarily remove the P10 add-on taxi fare once LPG price goes lower than P30 per liter, has changed his mind.
Cabucos said MCTOA will just wait for the decision of the LTFRB in Manila during the Dec. 3 scheduled hearing.
“We will abide by whatever decision LTFRB will make on the issue of the reduction of fare,” Cabucos said.
Bernardes said he will meet taxi operators because he believes they will voluntarily remove the P10 add-on fare even before the Dec. 3 hearing, considering that MCTOA and Citrasco never filed a petition for a fare increase.
Bernardes said the P10 add-on that Cebu taxi drivers and operators are enjoying is the result of the petition by taxi operators in Manila.
Last week, transport groups agreed to roll back fares following recent fuel price cuts caused by lower world oil prices. (EOB)
