Poe: LRT should improve train services first before any fare increase

Senator Grace Poe presides over a Senate inquiry in this file photo taken on April 12, 2023. Senate PRIB file photo / Voltaire F. Domingo

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Grace Poe on Monday slammed the fare hike for Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 (LRT-1, LRT-2), saying that it should first improve its train services before implementing any fare increase.

“Improvement in train services and facilities should come before any fare increase, not the other way around,” said Poe in a statement.

“Any fare hike is a pain in the pocket, especially to our students and workers who live on a shoestring budget and rely on the cheaper mass transportation,” she added.

Poe expected LRT-1, a private firm, to invest in a better train system.

“Kung maganda ang serbisyo, dadami ang pasahero. Nararapat lang na maramdaman nila ang ligtas, komportable at modernong train system sa bawat biyahe,” Poe said.

(If the service is good, there will be more passengers. It is only fitting that they feel safe, comfortable, and modern train system on every trip.)

Senator Grace Poe noted that the government was spending billions subsidizing LRT-2 but questioned its value to riders. The Senate will review these subsidies during the 2024 budget debate to ensure commuters get their money’s worth.

She was dismayed after the Department of Transportation earlier announced that LRT Lines 1 and 2 will implement a fare increase effective August 2, bringing its minimum boarding fee P13.29 (originally P11), 1.21 per kilometer for every kilometer traveled (originally P1 per kilometer).

RELATED STORIES:

DOTr approves fare hikes for LRT lines 1 and 2 but defers implementation

Fare hikes OK’d for bus, jeepney, taxi, TNVS sectors

JPV/abc