DOTC: LRT fare hike delay not caused by bus strike

A Department of Transportation and Communications official on Saturday belied speculations that the delay in a planned fare hike for the Light Rail Transit was due in part to last Monday’s strike by bus operators in Metro Manila. But DOTC spokesman Dante Velasco said the strike was a plus point of sorts for the LRT, which he said proved to be a stable mode of public transportation. “Walang kaugnayan [yung strike] kasi independent [ang ma bus firm].... Pero nakita natin na mas mahalaga ngayon ang LRT (Our decision to defer any fare hike is not connected to that strike that helped us to see LRT’s importance in transportation)," Velasco said in an interview on dzBB radio. On Friday, Velasco said the DOTC is deferring the fare hike to early 2011 their plans to hike fares for the LRT, as there is limited time to complete the procedures within this year. He hinted the LRT fare adjustment may be implemented as early as the first quarter of next year. “Hindi kaya tapusin ang proseso sa year na ito kaya next year na lang, first quarter of 2011," he said. Initial DOTC estimates peg the new LRT fare rate at P30 from the current P15 (maximum). He said the fare matrix is under review; after that, the LRT Authority will have to approve the new fee schedule, and public consultations will be conducted with stakeholders in the transport sector. The real cost of an average passenger trip in all three light-rail lines has been estimated at P60 or even more, but the maximum rates for MRT-3 and LRT-2 stand at P15 only, and P20 for LRT-1. Operators of several bus firms did not ply their routes to oppose a number-coding plan of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority. The MMDA’s plan involved banning buses from Metro Manila on weekdays, depending on the last number of their license plates. The strike inconvenienced some 8,500 commuters, most of them in Quezon and San Juan Cities. “In such events, the LRT has proven to be a very stable mode of transportation especially during strikes and other unforeseen events," Velasco said in Filipino. — LBG, GMANews.TV