LRT, MRT FARE HIKE OPPOSED BY LAWMAKERS; URGED AQUINO TO STOP HIKE
MANILA, JANUARY 13, 2011 (STAR) Lawmakers opposed the planned fare increase in the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) as they urged President Aquino to stop the hike.
"There are other ways to generate income. The riding public, a majority of whom are poor, should be the last to take the burden," Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo said.
"We could cut tax incentives now being enjoyed by big businesses and multinational companies. The campaign on tax cheats and smugglers can easily add to national coffers (rather) than passing the burden to the commuters now already experiencing economic woes," he said.
Gabriela party-list Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan said, "The commuting public is being hit left and right by these increases like a puny boxer fighting to survive in an arena of economic difficulties."
Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares said the group is studying the possibility of seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the fare hikes.
Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles appealed to Malacañang to make the increases gradual.
"That's like imposing additional taxes, and our administration has been so keen about not increasing taxes. Hunger incidence is rising again, according to the SWS (Social Weather Stations) survey. Let's not contribute to hunger incidence," Nograles said.
The government has approved new fare rates for the MRT and LRT systems beginning on March 1, with commuters of the EDSA railway paying a minimum fare of P15 from the current P10 and P30 from the current P15 for end-to-end trip.
The same fare matrix will be applied on LRT Line 1 stretching from Baclaran to Roosevelt Ave. and LRT Line 2 from Recto Ave. to Santolan.
Sen. Ralph Recto said students should be given discounts by the MRT and LRT authorities.
Recto also reiterated his call for an increase in the number of coaches of the light railways to serve more passengers daily.
"Daily users of MRT-LRT will now have to shell out more cash for their train trips to work and school and back. Now, it would not be too much to ask for something in return such as fare discounts and additional new trains," Recto said.
Recto, Senate ways and means committee chair, said the LRT and MRT should extend fare discount to thousands of students using their systems to help them absorb the fare increase.
"Apart from the law-mandated discount that must be bestowed on senior citizens, the MRT-LRT operators should extend fare discount to students who make up a significant part of the daily riders," Recto said.
Recto said "fare holidays" could also be offered on a more regular basis to mark special occasions or national holidays as a way of saying "thank you" to the commuters for helping the train systems finally turn a profit.
He also recommended the introduction of new rolling stocks or coaches to accommodate the growing number of MRT-LRT patrons.
He said the additional coaches would cut down turnaround time and avoid bunching up of commuters in train stations.
The MRT could accommodate 650,000 passengers daily but only about 500,000 could ride due to the lack of coaches.
Recto, however, disagreed with the plan of the train operators to increase train speed from the present 40 kilometers per hour to 60 kph to address the low turnaround rate of coaches.
"We can't substitute safety or efficiency for speed. A train traveling at 60 kph aboveground will have grave safety repercussions, especially when the rail tracks and the entire infrastructure were not built for such speed," he said.
"The solution is to add more coaches, not to hyperventilate the train's speedometer," he added.
The government should clarify if future increases in air-conditioned buses would trigger automatic adjustments in the fares of MRT and LRT systems, Recto added.
Protest planned against fare hike
Rail commuters group Riles Laan sa Sambayanan (RILES) condemned the Department of Transportation and Communications' (DOTC) approval of the fare hike of the MRT and LRT Lines 1 and 2 as they vowed to spearhead a series of protest actions against the impending fare hike set for implementation at all three rail lines.
Sammy Malunes, spokesman for RILES, which describes itself as a "broad network of commuters, workers, students, and the general public," lambasted the move of the DOTC headed by Secretary Jose de Jesus, who is also chairman of the LRT Authority (LRTA) board of directors, as a blatant disregard of the public's position on any fare hike at the three rail lines.
"The people's will has been defied. The interests of the big profiteers have again been favored by the Aquino regime with its approval of the widely opposed train fare hikes," Malunes said.
"The P10 increase in fares is already P20 additional cost for back-and-forth transportation. For an ordinary laborer, or any minimum wage earner, this is equivalent to two packs of instant noodles or a budget meal of vegetables. Monthly, the fare hike is already P400 out of our budget, which can be equivalent to our payment for water bills," Malunes stressed.
Lawyer Hernando Cabrera, LRTA corporate secretary and spokesman, said that the LRTA has already scheduled three sessions of public consultation to discuss the fare hikes at all three rail lines set for implementation on March 1.
"We have three public hearings to be held this February," Cabrera told The STAR in an interview.
Cabrera said that the hearings are scheduled on Feb. 4, 5 and 8, with all three hearings held at the LRT Line 2 Santolan, Pasig City station depot.
Cabrera said that the Feb. 4 hearing will be for student-riders of the MRT and LRT Lines 1 and 2, the Feb. 5 set for laborers and workers, and the Feb. 8 hearing dedicated to non-governmental organizations and special interest groups.
Bayan secretary-general Renato Reyes said the DOTC should not implement the fare increase without proper public consultations.
He said it's good that public hearings on the issue had been scheduled.
"An increase of this magnitude will have far-reaching effects on the pockets of some 1.2 million combined LRT and MRT commuters. For some commuters, their daily fares will increase by 100 percent without a corresponding wage or salary hike. We see no
justification for this utterly callous imposition," Reyes said.
Bayan said that it was unacceptable for the government to simply pass on the debt burden of MRT to consumers.
"Train systems perform a valuable public service and to some extent it is acceptable that they lose money. This has been the case for many passenger train systems throughout the world. They require government subsidy because of the important public function they perform," Reyes said. - With Christina Mendez, Rainier Allan Ronda, Evelyn Macairan, Rhodina Villanueva
FROM MANILA BULLETIN
TRANSPORT AUTHORITIES TO CAREFULLY STUDY FARE HIKE FOR JEEPNEYS, BUSES, TAXIS
[PHOTO - FARE HIKE REQUIREMENT: Photo shows a taximeter capable of printing out a receipt which is one of the requirements for the granting of an increase in taxi fares. The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said the fare hike will be applicable only to taxi units that have receipt-issuing meters. (Photo by KJ ROSALES)
MANILA, Philippines – Transport authorities would carefully study the proposed fare increase in passenger jeepneys and buses to check if this is justified, Malacañang said Tuesday.
Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) chair Nelson Laluces assured that the agency will thoroughly review all pertinent data if there is sufficient basis for any increase in the minimum fares of public utility vehicles.
In case another transport fare hike is approved, Lacierda said the government remains committed to mitigate its impact on the riding public.
"There is a pending petition with the jeepney and the bus. They will all be studied carefully before any decision will be issued by the LTFRB. LTFRB is still looking at the data whether the grant of the increase is justified or not," Lacierda said in a press briefing at the Palace.
Lacierda said government finance officials have declared the inflation remains at manageable levels despite looming fare increases of public utility vehicles. (Genalyn Kabiling)
FILIPINO ARTIST DONATES ARTWORKS
MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino visual artist based in Singapore has donated one of his artworks, a large metal sculpture, to the Philippine Embassy kicking off the chancery's budding art acquisition program.
According to artist Jinggoy Buensuseco the sculpture, titled "Waterfalls," was made of buffed aluminum whose abstract design was created through the use of industrial tools such as the arc weld.
Buensuceso, a furniture designer-turned-sculptor, described his sculpture as representing "life and the journey to different stages, showing that no matter what happens, life goes on like the continuous flow of the waterfalls."
Buensuceso recently exhibited his metal sculptures at Momentous Arts, one of Singapore's top galleries, as part of the annual Philippine Art Trek IV. He has also held exhibitions in New York and Manila.
Philippine Ambassador Minda C. Cruz, who received the artwork and signed the deed of donation together with the Singapore-based artist, pointed out that in the last few years, Philippine art has gained a strong following in the Lion City with the holding of frequent expositions by Filipino artists in major museums and top galleries, extending the regional reach and appreciation of Philippine visual arts. (Roy C. Mabasa)
D.P.W.H. WEIGHING CAMPAIGN
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will deploy Wednesday six teams of maintenance engineers who will be on the look out for overloaded trucks plying key entry points in Metro Manila.
Around eight personnel for every team formed by DPWH-National Capital Region will carry out the dry run of its anti-overloading operations, said Public Works director Reynaldo Tagudando in a text message.
"They will team up with personnel of the Land Transportation Office and the National Police to check on the axle load of freight trucks," Tagudando said.
They will be stationed at the Moriones Gate, Zaragosa Gate and Capulong in North Harbor and 8th and 2nd streets in South Harbor, both in Manila.
Other areas where trucks will be weighed include the corner of MIA and Coastal Roads in Paranaque City; Quirino Avenue in Las Pinas; Sumulong and Marcos Highways, Ortigas Extension; MacArthur Highway in Valenzuela; among others. (Raymund Antonio)
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