CASTELO REITERATES BID FOR STAGGERED FARE HIKES Rep. Winston Castelo (Liberal Party, 2nd District of Quezon City) today reiterated his bid for a middle ground on the controversial fare hikes for MRT-3, LRT-1 and LRT-2, as he sought for a three-month suspension of the fare hikes and two-year staggered fare increases as compromise. Saying that the fare increases should not be drastic, Castelo, chair of the House committee on Metro Manila Development, proposed an immediate fare hike suspension to last until April and fare increases in three equal installments to be imposed in April this year, April, 2016, and April 2017. The loss of P2 billion in annual subsidies and its deployment in social services expenses was being cited by Transportation and Communications Secretary Emilio Abaya III as the primary reason for the fare adjustment of the three train systems. Castelo however recalled that the House of Representatives has allocated in the supplemental as well as the 2015 regular budget a huge amount for the upkeep of the mass transport system. Castelo said a sudden one-time fare hike would adversely affect simple wage earners, who depend on the three train systems for their daily transport to work and other activity. Castelo urged the Department of Transportation and Communications (DoTC) to adopt his proposal. Castelo made the statement even as the announced fare adjustments would jack up the fares of LRT 1 from Baclaran to Roosevelt stations to P29 for a one-way trip from P12 and P15 at present; LRT-2 from Santolan to Recto stations to P24 from P20 per ride; and the MRT-3, between North Avenue and Taft Avenue, to P28 from P10 and P15 at present. “In the final analysis, the question should be whether the riding public would ultimately benefit from these government sanctions,” Castelo added. 30
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 15:02:16 +0000
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