TWG blames Angkas for terminating motorcycle taxi operations
MANILA, Philippines — The government's interagency technical working group blamed motorcycle hailing app
TWG Chairman Antonio
Sen. Grace Poe, chair of the Senate public services committee, criticized the recommendation of the TWG to end the pilot test
The TWG chair admitted that their data on the safety of motorcycle taxis came from
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Asked why they are
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(Because we cannot move on. There are many legal impediments along the way.
The MMDA, meanwhile, expressed support for the recommendation of the TWG
"If safety issue
Garcia added that
The MMDA chief also noted that there have been
The Transport Network Vehicle Service community of ridesharing companies holds a noise barrage in front of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board to air grievances.
Around 200 vehicles honked their horns in front of the LTFRB to ask for the return of the P2-per-minute charge, GMA News reports.
LTFRB had questioned Grab for imposing a P2-per-minute charge on its passengers and slapped a P10 million fine against the ride-hailing service firm last July.
Grab had also urged the LTFRB to increase the TNVS common supply base in Metro Manila from 65,000 to 80,500 to address passenger demand.
Sen. Koko Pimentel is seeking a probe into the "high-handed, arrogant and irresponsible acts" of Angeline Tham, a Singaporean national whom he claims owns 99.9% of motorcycle hailing company Angkas.
It was Pimentel who endorsed JoyRide, a competitor of Angkas, in September 2019 to Transportation Secretary Tugade purportedly to end the Angkas' "monopoly." The Philippine Competition Commission, however, had said that Angkas is not a monopoly like Grab is in the market. (With report from The STAR/Paolo Romero)
Motorcycle taxis will no longer be allowed to operate "maybe a week from now" after the Department of Transportation Technical Working Group announces termination of its study on motorcycle taxi services.
"We just submitted the report to Congress, to the committee on transportation," DOTr-TWG's Antonio Gardiola Jr. tells reporters.
JUST IN | DOTr-TWG official Antonio Gardiola, Jr., announces termination of their motorcycle-taxi study. All three motorcycle-taxi services can be apprehended starting next week, he added. (via @News5AKSYON / @maeannelosbanos) pic.twitter.com/bOmHlof5f5
— ONE News PH (@onenewsph) January 20, 2020
The Motorcycle Taxi technical working group on Monday evening accused ride-hailing app Angkas of making a public spectacle and "[resorting] to emotional blackmail" over a 10,000-rider cap that the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has imposed on motorcycle taxi firms.
In an open letter posted on the Department of Transportation's social media accounts, the TWG disputed Angkas' statement last Saturday that 17,000 of its 27,000 riders would lose their jobs because of the cap.
Angkas bikers are holding a protest along White Plains Avenue near EDSA in Quezon City against the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board's decision to cap their authorized riders to 10,000 from 27,000.
Angkas will be sharing an allotment of 39,000 riders with new players JoyRide and MoveIt in 2020.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has decreased the number of Angkas bikers allowed to operate on the road in 2020 to 10,000 from 27,000, the motorcycle taxi firm says.
This will mean a harder time for passengers trying to book rides on the service, which many use as an alternative to commuting and to more expensive services like Grab.
It is also, Angkas points out, "a direct blow to over 17,000 Filipino families."
Eto ba ang pamasko sa amin, mawalan ng trabaho? #SaveAngkas pic.twitter.com/0dKodruhAN
— Angkas (@angkas) December 21, 2019
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