A young couple enjoy teaching their daughter the proper way of moving back and forth on a swing at the Children’s Garden in Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City on Friday (Aug. 14, 2015). (MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – The Premium Taxi service that the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board is proposing is not meant to compete with the likes of Uber and GrabCar, an LTFRB official said Friday.
LTFRB executive director Roberto Cabrera said, “May mga lumalabas na balita na direct competition [ito], na para patayin iyung denomination with the other. Hindi ho ito ang purpose nito.”
Cabrera said that Premium Taxi is an opportunity for existing taxi companies to provide a higher quality of transportation service.
“In a meeting with taxi operators, they see this na makakatulong sa negosyo nila. Medyo saturated na po kasi iyung mga taxi po nila and they want a better service to offer without shifting [their business]. They want to retain being a taxi company,” he said.
In an earlier statement, LTFRB chair Winston Ginez said Premium Taxis are “marked vehicles with common color (black) and “will sport yellow plates.”
They may be hailed in the streets and passengers may still pay in cash. The vehicles, however, will be equipped with GPS, which takes after one of the factors of popularity of app-based services.
“With Premium Taxi, [may] GPS po ‘yun … we rely on the operators’ word na bibigyan nila kami ng listahan ng drivers nila. Gusto rin po naming maprotektahan ‘yung taxi users,” he said.
He also pointed out that the LTFRB wants Uber and other app-based companies to abide by their rules to better help ensure public safety.
“For the past five months, we have announced that we will accredit them para makuha namin ‘yung database nila,” he said.
Also, he said, “Binibigyan namin sila ng pagkakataon na ibigay ‘yung database, to study ‘yung plano nila … Once na ini-accredit na po namin, the passenger will feel safer … May katulong nang magmo-monifor ng mga driver.”(MNS)