By Jimmyley Guzman
QUEZON CITY (PIA) — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) held a consultation meeting for the proposed fare increase of Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVS) companies.
LTFRB Chairperson Atty. Vigor D. Mendoza II said the meeting with representatives of the TNVS companies is the first of a series of meetings that the agency will hold to expedite the resolution of all the pending petitions for fare hike in line with the instruction of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to ensure the welfare of those in the public transport sector.
“We want to hear all sides in the spirit of fairness because the discussion on fare increase is a sensitive issue that does not only involve the commuters but our economy as well,” he said.
“That’s why we held a consultation for them and we asked them to submit some documents that are needed when we in the LTFRB start the deliberation for the fare increase petition on the TNVS,” he added.
Mendoza earlier said the LTFRB will hold a series of fare hike-related public consultation meetings as the series of oil price hikes prompted various transport groups to revive their petition for a fare hike.
He noted that the last time that a fare hike was approved was in October 2023 and it was a P1 provisional increase, a decision which is seen as a middle ground since the country is still reeling from the adverse economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since then, a number of fare hike petitions were filed before the LTFRB; the recent petitions were filed by three major transport groups in October 2024.
Mendoza said they decided to hold separate public consultations in order to ensure healthy and organized discussions on the matter.
During the meeting with TNVS last Tuesday, several representatives raised several concerns and requests that they want the LTFRB to look into, particularly on the aspect of commissions and long duty hours for TNVS drivers.
While there are some concerns and requests that go beyond the mandate of the LTFRB, Mendoza assured that all of them will be consolidated and will be a subject of dialogue with concerned government agencies like the Department of Labor and Employment and the Office of the Solicitor General.
The next public consultation will be held with bus, taxi, and jeepney stakeholders.
Mendoza said the LTFRB fully understands the concerns of those in the transport sector, the reason why the agency wants to expedite the hearing in order to come up with a decision in the soonest possible time.
“Our goal is to come up with a decision that is acceptable to everybody. If there would be fare increase, we assure that there will be a balance between the commuters’ capacity to pay and the need to attend to the concerns of those in the public transport sector,” he added. (JEG/PIA-NCR)
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