LTFRB to ‘persuade’ taxi operators not to pass on cost of receipt-issuing meter

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board will try to “persuade" taxi operators not to pass to their drivers the burden of buying new calibrated, receipt-issuing meters so they can qualify for a fare hike. But LTFRB Chairman Nelson Laluces admitted they cannot go beyond persuasion as they cannot interfere with the operations of private taxi firms. “Sa amin, pwede namin tingnan at pakiusapan ang operator... na singilin dun sa driver ang bagong taxi meter. Pero siyempre, mahirap pakialaman yan dahil arrangement ng operator at driver yan," he said in an interview on dwIZ radio. (We can look into this and persuade operators to not charge the driver for the meters. But we are aware this can be part of an arrangement between the operator and the driver and it is hard to interfere.) He cited initial reports reaching him indicating some taxi drivers are complaining of the added burden of having to pay for the calibrated, receipt-issuing meter. A calibrated, receipt-issuing meter is one of the requirements the LTFRB has imposed before taxis could start charging a flag-down rate of P40 instead of the existing P30. “While the taxi operator is to pay for the meter, the calibration is free," Laluces noted. In some cases, taxi operators hike the boundary or quota of taxi drivers to recoup what was spent for the receipt-issuing meter — which is between P14,000 to P15,800, according to some news reports. [Also see story: Taxi meter receipt scheme set to start] But Laluces admitted his agency cannot go beyond persuading the operators. On Monday, the LTFRB allowed some taxis to start charging the P40 minimum fare, but on condition they already have calibrated and installed receipt-issuing machines. The LTFRB also set a schedule for the calibration of meters, as it said it cannot recalibrate all meters of more than 20,000 taxis simultaneously. First to have their meters re-calibrated are taxis with plate numbers ending in 1 and 6. Taxis with plate numbers ending in 2 and 7 will have their turn in February; those ending in 3 and 8 in March; those ending in 4 and 9 in April; and those ending in 5 and 0 in May. Also, the LTFRB said commuters should also check for the appropriate stickers on windshields indicating the taxi is already authorized to charge a minimum fare of P40. — LBG, GMANews.TV