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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Lack of matrix on display prevented 235k PUVs to collect new fares

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Only 15,000 or about six percent of the targeted 250,000 public utility vehicles (PUVs) nationwide have obtained a copy of the updated fare matrix, and thus were able to charge the new base fare of P12 on Monday, the first day of the implementation of increased fares.

FARE HIKE MOVES. A dispatcher at a jeepney station in Padre Faura, Manila collects fares. Danny Pata

“Regarding the fare matrix for the effectivity of the new fare adjustment, only around six percent of our 250,000 target PUVs have obtained a copy of the fare matrix,” Board Member Mercy Jane Paras-Leynes of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said in a television interview.

PUVs that do not display a copy of the new fare matrix would be fined P5,000 based on LTFRB’s Joint Administrative Order No. 2014-001, Leynes said.

According to her, the LTFRB charges P50 for a copy of the updated fare matrix.

This developed as the country’s oil firms cut pump prices by as much as P0.85 per liter effective 6 a.m. today to reflect the movement of prices in the world oil market.

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The oil firms cut the price of kerosene by P0.85 per liter, diesel by P0.45 per liter, and gasoline by P0.40 per liter in the fifth consecutive week of price cuts.

“PTT Philippines to implement the following price rollbacks effective 6 am Tuesday, October 4, 2022: Gasoline by P0.40 per liter, diesel by P0.45 per liter,” the company said in its advisory.

Other companies such as Cleanfuel, Seaoil Philippines, Chevron Philippines, PetroGazz, and Flying V also announced price cuts.

Considering the low number of PUVs that do not have a copy of the updated fare matrix on the day of the fare increase, Leynes said the LTFRB has prepared its monitoring teams to check PUVs.

The transport board already reached out to operators to ensure the compliance of their PUVs, she added.

Leynes advised commuters to report PUVs that do not have a new fare matrix through LTFRB’s Facebook page and hotline 1342.

Starting Monday, commuters paid more for public transport after the LTFRB approved fare adjustments amid the continuous increase in petroleum prices.

FARE HIKE MOVES. A driver fixes his old fare matrix at a PUJ terminal along Katipunan Ave, Quezon City. Manny Palmero

The LTFRB approved a P1 provisional increase in the minimum fare for the first four kilometers of travel in public utility jeepneys (PUJs), bringing the minimum fare for traditional PUJ up to P12, and the modern PUJ up to P14.

It also approved an additional fare per succeeding kilometer, up by P0.30 for traditional PUJs to P1.80, and by P0.40 for modern PUJs to P2.20.

For public utility buses (PUBs), the minimum fare for city buses will be hiked by P2 for the first five kilometers—P13 for the regular buses, and P15 for the air-conditioned buses.

The minimum fares for provincial buses will also be hiked by P2, with succeeding kilometer fare increases ranging from P1.90 to P2.90 depending on the type of bus.

For taxis, the flag-down rate will be hiked to P45, and P40 in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).

Fares of transport network vehicle services (TNVS) will likewise increase to P35 for hatchback-type vehicles; P45 for sedan-type vehicles; P55 for Asian utility vehicles (AUVs) and sports utility vehicles (SUVs).

Meanwhile, the cutbacks in pump prices followed the rollback in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) price on October 1 to P2.55 per kilo and auto LPG of P1.43 per liter.

“These reflect the international contract price of LPG for the month of October,” Petron said.

Rodela Romero, Director III of the Department of Energy’s Oil Industry Management Bureau, said last week the price rollback was due to the “high-interest rates implemented by the Central Bank of America and Europe that made the demand for oil slow down.”

The peso’s depreciation versus the dollar also impacts pump prices, Romero said.

According to the latest monitoring of the Department of Energy, the oil demand outlook turned weaker on expectations of slower global economic growth as central banks hiked interest rates to bring down inflation.

Worries over a US recession and demand slowdown from China and Japan impacted pump prices. China’s consumption remains tempered due to strict COVID-19 controls, while the typhoon season in Japan is also expected to weaken demand.

FARE HIKE MOVES. A modern-jeepney driver shows a copy of the current fare matrix document to his passengers at the Escoda Terminal in Ermita, also in Manila, on Monday. Norman Cruz

On September 27, the oil companies cut the price of gasoline by P1.65 to P1.75 per liter, diesel by P1.25, and P1.35 for kerosene.

These resulted in the total year-to-date adjustments at a net increase of P14.85 per liter for gasoline, P29.40 per liter for diesel, and P24.10 per liter for kerosene.

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