Fare rates for tricycles in Dumaguete City may be increased this year due to the continued rise in prices of petroleum and fuel products, said Councilor Nilo Sayson, chair of Peace and Order and Public Safety.
A public hearing was held last January 6 on the proposed fare hike, which will be pegged from a minimum of P7.50 to P8 per passenger for the first kilometer and an additional of 50 centavos for every succeeding kilometer.
However, Sayson said that under this proposal, students who can present valid school identification cards will get a 50-centavo discount from the basic fare while senior citizens are entitled to a 20 percent discount. This privilege is in accordance with the Republic Act No. 7432 and DILG Circular 94036.
Under City Ordinance 15, series of 2009, the basic fare rate is adjusted in proportion to the pump price of premium gasoline per liter.
The fare was pegged at P6.50 when the price of fuel was at P42.50 per liter but with premium gasoline at P62.50 per liter, the fare would be pegged at P8.00 per person. When premium gasoline price would reach P107.50, the basic fare rate would automatically adjust to P12.50 per person.
But Vice Mayor Alan Gel Cordova said that a resolution to this effect has not yet been made and the ordinance still needs to be passed in the Council and signed by Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria before it could fully be implemented.
Cordova said in the absence of a tariff posted on the tricycle, the driver does not have the right to demand the increase.
On the other hand, during the public hearing, Sayson said most of the complaints raised by the public were the refusal of MCH drivers to convey passengers especially if their destination is quite far and some includes smoking while driving, over speeding, and snubbing passengers.
Sayson said any driver who violates traffic rules and regulations will get a citation ticket from traffic enforcers, varying from P100 to P 1,500 depending on the weight of the offense.
Sayson called on the public to cooperate with the law enforcement agency in disciplining MCH drivers by reporting all their violations and infractions to the Traffic Management Office (TMO).
The city official plans to post hotline numbers in every tricycle so that it would be easier to contact the TMO whenever there are complaints. (PIA/JSC)