SURIGAO CITY (MindaNews / 21 Jan) – The huge drop of prices of petroleum products in the global market has pushed the city government to implement a one-peso reduction on tricycle fare from the current eight pesos.
This was implemented after the city government has met the publication requirement on the city council’s ordinance for the adjustment of the fare.
Based on the old fare, regular passengers were paying P8 for the first two kilometers; students, senior citizens and persons with disability, P7; and elementary and kindergarten pupils and preschoolers, P5.
Councilor Jose V. Begil Jr., chairperson of the Sangguniang Panlungsod’s committee on transportation, said this adjustment in tricycle fare was due to the oil price rollback.
He said that effective Wednesday, for the first two kilometers, regular passengers will pay P7; high school and college students, senior citizens and persons with disability, P6; and elementary and kindergarten pupils and preschoolers, P4.
Begil said there will be a 75-centavo addition for every succeeding kilometer.
Surigao City has 2,600 tricycles although only 2,100 of which could operate at any given time because of number coding, Begil said.
Genaro Cardino, a tricycle driver, said he readily complied with the new fare matrix, to the delight of his passengers when he returned the change. “They don’t know that today is the implementation,” he said in Surigaonon.
“Me and my wife ride the tricycle four times a day in going to the office. We would save P8 a day, or a total of P40 a week or P160 a month,” said commuter Jay Ngojo.
