LTFRB orders Uber to defer Pasig project

Aside from imposing a hefty nine-digit fine on Uber, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has also ordered the transportation network company (TNC) to defer the launch of its new project designed to help bus riders in Pasig City.

LTFRB board member Aileen Lizada said the TNC was asked not to proceed with the Sept. 10 launch of its project dubbed “Uber-Pasig Bus.”

She explained that the regulatory body must first know the details, especially if bus operators would later complain about the project.

“There are different denominations that the government allows. But please respect your ambit and the regulations. Do not overlap. We are not competing against each other. We should be complementing [our services],” Lizada said.

Uber was ordered to formally present the project to the LTFRB on Wednesday.

According to an Aug. 10 letter sent by Uber to the LTFRB, its upcoming project in partnership with the Pasig city government would allow users of the Uber app to “see where all the Pasig buses are on the map,” thereby “removing the guesswork out of their daily plans.”

“[This feature] will enable the riders of the Pasig bus to make informed decisions when deciding whether to stay in their office, walk to the nearest bus stop or take other transport options instead. [It] gives us the opportunity to solve some of the pain-points and challenges faced by existing and potential riders of the Pasig City bus system,” said Irish Salandanan-Almeida, Uber’s public policy associate.

In June last year, the Pasig local government launched a P3.3-million bus service for commuters within the Ortigas Center in an effort to reduce the volume of cars while reducing air pollution in the business district.

Almeida explained that since the bus service is free, “no booking or payments” would be made on the Uber app, whose new feature was designed to “make trips around the Pasig central business district easy, convenient and more efficient.”

Late Friday night, in an order issued well beyond office hours, the LTFRB granted Uber’s petition to be allowed to a pay fine instead of fully serving a one-month suspension for defying a government order for TNCs to stop accepting new partner drivers.

But the fine imposed by the board reached a staggering P190 million—or 19 times the amount Uber earlier offered to pay. – Jovic Yee