LTRFB announces P1 fare hike for regular jeeps, P2 for modern jeeps

MANILA, Philippines, March 18 ------ The provisional fare hike of P1 for traditional jeepneys and P2 for modern jeepneys will be effective starting Thursday, March 19, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) announced.

LTFRB chairperson Atty. Vigor Mendoza III made this announcement amid the oil price hike as the tension in the Middle East continues. He said that the new policy was based on the 2023 petitions for fare hike. “The difficulty here is the price of fuel is so erratic in the sense that every week, we see substantial, not just minimal changes, but substantial changes,” the LTFRB chief said in a press conference. Here are the fare increases based on the announcement of the board:

The existing fare of P13 for the traditional jeepneys would now become P14, reflecting an 8% increase. The provisional P1 fare increase for traditional jeepneys approved in 2023, which brought the fare from P12 to P13. There will be a P2 fare hike for modern jeepneys, from P15 to P17, which reflects a 13% increase. There’s also a hike of .20 per succeeding kilometer for traditional and modern jeepneys. This will bring the succeeding rate of traditional jeepneys from P1.80 to P2 and from P2.20 to P2.40 for modern jeepneys.

The LTFRB considered various petitions filed by stakeholders in 2023. It said the factors for the fare hike involved the price of fuel for P75-80 per liter for the past weeks, minimum wage increase, and increase in maintenance and other operational costs. The agency reported that the fare hike will be effective on Thursday. The operators of the public utility vehicles may start implementing the new fare policies once they have a copy of the fare guide.

The fair hike is provisional until the operators secure their fare matrices until June. “As of now, as we speak right now, all of these are provisional. They can implement it right away,” Mendoza said. “Our condition to make the fare hike permanent is for them to secure their fare matrix on or before June 2026,” he noted.

When asked what will happen if the ongoing conflict in the Middle East eases and the price of fuel returns to normal, Mendoza said that there will be an initial decrease in fares. “Immediately, there will be a provisional reduction. There will be a pending hearing… Immediately, once the price of fuel drops below the P75 level, there will be a provisional reduction immediately,” he answered. There are still pending fare hike petitions for regular taxis, UV express and motorcycle taxis.

The LTFRB will decide on the petitions next week. “When they get their fare guides, they can already implement this. It becomes permanent probably in June,” Mendoza said. “First, this is just provisional. When they have obtained their fare matrix next week, that will become permanent. But they have until June to secure their fare matrices,” he added.

Source: inquirer.net