Taxi operators mull seeking fare hike

Citing the latest round of fuel price hikes, taxi operators will ask the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) for a fare hike. Philippine National Taxi Operators Association president Manuel Suntay said Monday they can no longer keep up with the price hikes after holding back on a fare hike for six years. "Fina-finalize namin ang draft ng petition namin. Within the week ifa-file namin ito. Sana maintindihan ng mananakay namin (We are finalizing the draft of our petition and we will file it within this week. We hope passengers understand our plight)," Suntay said in an interview on dwIZ radio. As early as 2008, the group said it had planned to seek an increase on the existing taxi flagdown rate across the country from P30 to P40.

Suntay said that while they have held back because they shifted to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), even Auto-LPG prices had gone up. He said that in 2004, LPG prices were P17/liter and gas was at P24/liter. Now, he said Auto LPG sells for P27/liter and gas sells for P43/liter. This means taxi drivers may have to turn over to the operator a boundary of between P600 and P1,300 a day, depending on the vehicle’s fuel efficiency. Suntay also argued that bus and jeep fares had been adjusted four times since 2004, while taxi fares remained stationary. "As much as possible we try to avoid filing a petition for fare increase. Anim na taon dahil tumaas ang presyo ng krudo ginawa namin mag-shift to Auto LPG para ma-avoid pag-file ng fare increase (As much as possible we try to avoid filing a petition for a fare increase. For six years, when prices of fuel went up, we shifted to Auto LPG to avoid a fare hike)," he said. - RSJ, GMANews.TV