(Photo courtesy of: LTFRB)
MANILA — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) started Tuesday its calibration and resealing of taxi meters in compliance with the fare adjustment it has approved.
The calibration and resealing of meters is being conducted in a property of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) along NAIA Road in Paranaque City.
The facility will be able to handle around 200 taxis at a time while a holding area for taxi drivers and operators is in place to verify that they have submitted the complete requirements and are present during the scheduled date of calibration and resealing.
“Calibration and resealing of meters is done to make sure that the fare is in accordance with what the LTFRB has set,” the LTFRB said in a statement.
A road test would be conducted among taxis that have their meters calibrated to ensure that it imposes the correct fare with their resealing to be done afterwards.
A Taximeter Calibration Certification sticker would be placed on the top right corner of the windshield of the taxi once it has passed the test.
The MIAA has allowed the Board to use its facility for the calibration and resealing until November.
The LTFRB has yet to comment when asked if they are planning to install additional facilities across Metro Manila as of this writing.
It is aiming to reseal more than 21,000 taxi units in the metropolis.
Last October, the LTFRB has approved a new fare structure for taxis which is set at PHP40 for the flagdown rate, PHP13.50 for every kilometer of distance travelled, and PHP2 per minute of waiting time in the National Capital Region and provinces except in Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).
For taxis operating in CAR, the flagdown will be at PHP35 with the same rates for distance traveled and travel time.
The Board explained the increase was granted due to the recent spate of oil price hikes and to enable taxi drivers and operators to be competitive with transportation network companies.
“It is urgent that the fare for taxis be increased for them to improve the quality of their service and become competitive amid increasing demand of passengers,” LTFRB Chairman Martin Delgra III said in a previous interview.
Taxi drivers and operators should be compliant with the Omnibus Franchising Guidelines (OFG) under the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program.
The OFG states that public utility vehicles should have closed-circuit television cameras, a GPS navigation system, speed limiters, dashboard cameras, and free Wi-Fi connectivity. (Aerol John Pateña/PNA)
