'Catastrophic' scenario seen for millions of commuters
Philippines — The recent order of the franchising board suspending operations of ride-sharing vehicles without government-issued certificates is seen to have a massive impact on millions of commuters.
"It will be catastrophic," said Yves Gonzalez, who heads public policy at Uber, in a statement to Philippine STAR columnist Boo Chanco. "It's equivalent to ordering us to just shut down."
Gonzalez said Uber could even not meet the current demand for ride-sharing services, which boomed in recent years in Metro Manila, which is beset by gridlock and public transportation woes daily. The transport network company falls short in delivering vehicles to commuters by 20 to 30 percent, he said.
Last July 11, the Land Transportation, Franchising and Regulatory Board, which regulates public transportation, released a memorandum saying that “both Transport Network Companies (Grab and Uber) are directed to cease with dispatch the operations of all their (Transport Network Vehicle Service) TNVS which do not have the required Certificates of Public Convenience." The order will take effect on July 26.
Gonzalez, who previously worked for the Metro Manila Development Authority, painted a bleak scenario once the LTFRB's memorandum circular takes effect.
"Fares will be max all the time, wait times will be hours not minutes. People will just not be able to get a ride overall. Imagine how hard it is to get a ride now on a Friday night with the existing supply. When you remove the unregistered, it’s an impossible situation for everyone,” he said.
There are an estimated 56,000 Uber and Grab vehicles, but only 10 percent of these were properly registered as ride-sharing vehicles, said the franchising board. About 30,000 are considered illegal and are in danger of being impounded.
The board’s order was backed by Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade who said that the agencies are not against Uber and Grab, but only after the registration of "colorum" or illegal vehicles.
“Ang sinasabi lang ho ng LTFRB is puwede ba mag-rehistro naman kayo. What makes you so different [from] other PUVs (public utility vehicles)?” Tugade said.
Uber, however, said “it is counter-intuitive to force fit regulations drafted for 100-percent public utility vehicles to technology companies and its partners.”
The LTFRB has also been criticized for the slow processing of the applications of franchises. Moreover, it stopped receiving applications for new TNVS franchises since mid-2016. It cited the volume of applications as reason for the halt.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the LTFRB, Grab and Uber agreed at a meeting led by Sen. Grace Poe to temporarily allow unregistered vehicles to operate beyond July 26 pending the resolution of a motion for reconsideration by the companies. As of posting time, Grab and Uber are yet to file the motion.
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