A commuter group is urging President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos to retract his approval of the fare increase in Light Rail Transit (LRT) Lines 1 and 2, emphasizing that Filipinos are still suffering from inflation.
According to Primo Morillo, convener of The Passenger Forum, the country’s inflation rate remains at six percent, and commuters have yet to feel the supposed economic recovery.
“The situation today and in April 2022, when the president deferred the planned train fare increases, are practically the same,” he said.
He believes that the government should bear the costs.
Marcos authorized rate increases for LRT-1 and 2 on Monday, raising the boarding cost to a minimum of ₱13.29 and charging per kilometer to ₱1.21 from ₱1.
The fare increase will be effective beginning August 2.
The additional revenue from the fare adjustment will be used to rehabilitate and modernize the LRT-1 and LRT-2 trains.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Assistant Secretary Jorjette Aquino earlier stated that the administration chose to adopt the fee increase after inflation fell to a 12-month low of 6.1 percent in May.
Last Monday, the management of Metro Rail Transit (MRT-3) Line 3 also announced its plan to refile a petition for a fare increase in the next two weeks.
