LTFRB tells 2 app-using transport services to stop
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Friday ordered two companies offering app-enabled transport services to cease operations, saying they have yet to meet government requirements.
The LTFRB applied the brakes on Wunder Carpool and Angkas, citing their failure to coordinate with the agency in order to be accredited as TNCs or transport network companies. The board has so far approved only three TNCs to operate in the country: Grab, Uber and U-Hop.
“The LTFRB strongly warns (Wunder Carpool and Angkas) to stop all bookings made with the use of this kind of application/platform. Otherwise, LTFRB will be constrained to take legal actions against [them] and their illegitimate operators,” the agency said in a statement yesterday.
Accreditation rules
Under the LTFRB’s Memorandum Circular No. 2015-015, which sets the rules and regulations for the accreditation of TNCs, only companies that have submitted their business model, business permit and fare rates, among other requirements, are given a franchise to operate.
Article continues after this advertisementBased on its app profile, Angkas, launched in December 2016 and developed by DBDOYC Inc., is a “professional on-demand motorcycle taxi service that allows commuters to safely and conveniently beat traffic.”
Article continues after this advertisementIt is said to be operating in the cities of Taguig, Makati, Manila, Pasay and Pasig, and charges a base fare of P50 for the first two kilometers. Passengers are charged P10 for every succeeding kilometer.
The service claims that all its riders are “professional bikers” and that passengers are “covered with personal accident insurance.”
Wunder Carpool, launched in February 2016 and developed by WunderCar Mobility Solutions GmbH, is a “nonprofit” ride-sharing app which allows Metro Manila and Cebu drivers to “offer up empty seats in their cars on the way to the office.”
It claims that its drivers have saved, at the most, P5,000 every month by sharing the cost of the trip with passengers who use the app. It added that since the service was launched, it has gathered over 200,000 riders and drivers in its platform.
