LTFRB: GrabBike still unauthorized

THE LAND Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Tuesday reminded the public that it had yet to authorize the operation of the motorcycle service GrabBike despite the reported launch of a new mobile app for it.

LTFRB chair Winston Ginez said the board, together with the Land Transportation Office, was looking into the matter and studying the action to be taken against the company.

“Insofar as the operation of motorcycles  as public utility vehicle is concerned, there is already a memorandum from the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC)  addressed to LTFRB that we should not grant it (authorization) on the ground that it is an unsafe motor vehicle to be used for public transport,” Ginez told reporters.

The DOTC earlier said using motorcycles for public transport was not in line with its policy of shifting to higher-capacity public transport system especially in dense urban areas.

In January, the LTFRB warned MyTaxiPH that it could lose its accreditation if it does not comply with the order to stop offering the motorcycle service. MyTaxiPH, a subsidiary of MyTeksi Malaysia, introduced the ride-hailing mobile app GrabTaxi, now known as Grab, in the Philippines.

MyTaxiPH, however, maintained that while they are operating in the same mobile platform, a different company was running GrabBike.