A TRANSPORT group in Western Visayas is amenable to a fare rate reduction provided it will only be provisional or temporary.
Jessie Ortega, secretary-general of Sentrong Samahan ng Tsuper at Operators-Negros (SSTONE), said the reduction should only be temporary, because the rollback in the price of fuels may also be temporary only.
Transport groups in Iloilo Province have already filed a petition for a 50-centavo fare rate reduction before the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board-Western Visayas (LTFRB-6).
Ortega said they are expecting that a public hearing will be conducted by the LTFRB before implementing any fare rate reduction.
At present, regular jeepney fare rate in Western Visayas is P7.50. The rate for students, senior citizens, and persons with disabilities is P6.
The position of Ortega, however, is opposite to the stand of other local transport leaders, who had earlier said there is no need for fare price rollback in Bacolod City and Negros Occidental.
They said fare rates in the city and the province are lower compared to those in Metro Manila.
Elizabeth Katalbas, chair of the Federation of Bacolod City Drivers Association, said that since fare rates here have been lower, at the height of higher fuel prices, the LTFRB did not approve their petition for a 50 centavos fare increase.
Diego Malacad, secretary general of United Negros Drivers and Operators Center, said that even if there is no fare rollback in the province and the rest of Western Visayas, most drivers allow commuters to pay only P7 for regular fare.
In December, the LTFRB ordered to bring back the minimum fare of jeepneys from P8.50 to P7.50 in the National Capital Region.