Press Release
January 13, 2011

Villar: Seniors, PWDs, gov't employees should also
get LRT-MRT fare discount

Sen. Manny Villar today urged the Department of Transportation and Communications to study a scheme that would give discounts to senior citizens, persons with disabilities and government employees riding the LRT and MRT trains. He said this should be on top of the student discount proposed by fellow Senator Ralph Recto.

"The New Year welcomed us with price increases in toll fees, petroleum products and basic commodities. With the looming fare hike in the LRT and MRT, a way to ease the burden of low income families would be a discounted fare, similar to what is being implemented in jeepneys and buses," Villar said.

"Discounted train fare for our elderly and PWDs is also a way to show that we care for them and that we are open to giving them all the benefits and privileges possible to make things easier for them," he added.

He said government employees who use the MRT and LRT trains as the daily means of transportation will have to pay more for the fare and will reduce further their already measly take home pay.

Villar said effective governance is not only about making popular decisions; there are unpopular decisions that would have to be made in order to help us move forward. He said lesser state subsidy on the operations of MRT and LRT trains would mean bigger spending for priority areas such as health and education.

In a briefing last Tuesday, the DOTC said new rates for the Metro Manila train lines will take effect by March. For the entire MRT line from Taft to North Avenue, the new rates will be raised to P28 from P15. Fare on the LRT line 1 will cost the maximum of P30 for the entire 20-kilometer line from Baclaran to Roosevelt and P25 for the LRT line 2's 14 kilometers from Recto to Santolan.

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