UPDATED: 100,000 More Ride-Hailing Service Vehicles to Hit the Road in Coming Weeks
Will supply and demand finally match?
(SPOT.ph) Booking a Grab has been near impossible these past few months, so much so that desperate passengers have resorted to boarding Lalamove transport vehicles just to get to their destination.
Now, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has greenlit the registration of 100,000 more cars and motorcycle taxis as transport network vehicle services. Their initial statement on February 3 pointed to vehicles under Grab Philippines—the board has since clarified that the 100,000 slots are meant for all transportation network companies. "100k slots, para sa lahat, " they said on their Facebook page on February 17.
According to the latest statement from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), "Ayon kay LTFRB Chairman Atty. Teofilo Guadiz III, magsasagawa muna ng mga public hearing ang ahensya kasama ang iba’t ibang stakeholder bago ito magkaroon ng deliberasyon, kasabay ng pakikipag-ugnayan sa Department of Transportation (DOTr) upang mailabas ang kaukulang pamantayan."
The February 17 statement explains that the slots will be open for vehicles under any transport network company, a.k.a. TNC.
The February 3 statement reads, "Ayon kay LTFRB chairman Atty. Teofilo Guadiz III, sa ngayon ay nasa 100,000 sasakyan muna na nakarehistro sa Grab ang mabibigyan ng prangkisa."
Also read: You Can Soon Use GCash to Pay for Grab Transactions In-App
Slowly but surely for Grab rollout
This initial roll-out of new registrations comes after Grab chief executive officer Anthony Tan’s promise of 500,000 new job opportunities for Filipinos, as made during a meeting at Malacañan Palace with President Ferdinand “BongBong” Marcos on February 2.
Tan’s proposal to remove the cap on transport network vehicle services (TNVS) isn’t something the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is too keen on, however.
“So, initially, 100,000 and increasing further in three months' time. We may increase the number until such time that the number of TNVS matches the needs of the riding public,” LTFRB Chair Teofilo Guadiz III said in a statement on Friday. “100,000 is the initial, hindi naman natin bibiglain lahat 'yan to prevent saturation in the market.”
To become a TNVS franchisee, one must own a professional driver’s license and sit through a 15-hour seminar on road safety. Other requirements will be announced in two memorandum circulars slated for release soon.
Tan is also looking to expand TNVS franchises in Davao, Cebu, and Iloilo, with particular focus on penetrating the motorcycle taxi space. He reiterated Grab's call for lawmakers to legalize the operation of motorcycle taxis beyond the pilot study, which has been ongoing since 2019.
“That’s why I’m in a hurry. If we can roll this out as quickly as possible—and I know the way Grab moves, they move very, very quickly—because you’ve done it so many times before. In the scale, you don’t have to scale it. You’ve scaled it already,” Marcos was quoted as telling Tan.
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UPDATED (February 17, 2023): This article was updated following the LTFRB's clarification on their earlier February 3 statement.