President Marcos announced that ferry and bus fares will not increase during Holy Week after securing commitments from operators. The government is providing subsidies to the transport sector amid soaring fuel prices due to the Middle East conflict.
In an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. stated that ferry and bus fares will not rise during Holy Week. “We’ve gotten commitments from (operators of) ferries that they will not raise their fares. We’re doing the same thing with buses. They will not raise their fares nor will they limit or cut down the trips they will be taking,” Marcos said. He added, “We’re doing everything we can so the riding public, the general public, the people who are working, the middle class – they are the ones we are most concerned about – so it does not become a drag to their livelihoods.” Amid rising fuel prices triggered by the Middle East conflict, the government is subsidizing the transport sector, including fuel subsidies and cash aid for public utility vehicle operators and drivers. “In the next two days, we’re going to be spending about P2.5 billion in fuel subsidies. We have planned four of those rounds of subsidies,” Marcos noted. Meanwhile, about 40 percent of provincial bus operators have cut trips due to fuel supply uncertainties, according to Alex Yague, executive director of the Provincial Bus Operators Association of the Philippines, in a radio dzBB interview. “Our tanks are not full. We are saving our fuel as much as possible,” Yague said. Bus operations have declined at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange, though a surge is anticipated for Holy Week. The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority will suspend the expanded number coding scheme from April 1 to 6 and allow provincial buses on parts of EDSA until April 9. Some 2,476 MMDA personnel will monitor transport hubs and pilgrimage areas, including the traditional route to Antipolo City for Visita Iglesia.
