After 2011 toll fee hikes, toll operators report increased profits

After 2011 toll fee hikes, toll operators report increased profits

“The TRB decision approving the automatic increase in toll fee rates every two years should be scrapped.” – Taxpayers Unity vs Toll Fee Hike
By MARYA SALAMAT
Bulatlat.com
MANILA – While most Filipinos today are gritting their teeth over the left and right hike in fees and prices that greeted them this new year, private toll operators of the capital’s highways “are feasting on higher profits,” as a group of consumers focusing on operations of the privatized toll roads said recently.

“This is outrageous,” said the Tutol-Hike or Taxpayers Unity vs Toll Fee Hike, an alliance of consumers, employees and former workers of public transport facilities, as reports came out that the Manila North Tollways Corporation (MNTC) is expecting its 2011 revenues to be bigger by 12 percent compared to previous year. The increase is attributed to higher toll fees at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx).

Rodrigo E. Franco, MNTC president, said the increase in revenues is due to toll rate increase. The increase has apparently more than offset the slight reduction in traffic volume at the expressway. Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) disclosed last week that MNTC’s revenue is expected to hit P6.5 billion, higher than P5.8 billion recorded in 2010.

Against public opposition, toll fees in NLEx and other privately operated toll roads were raised by 12-13 percent last year (the SLEx rate was raised by about 300-percent). These increases threaten to be implemented at the expressway every two years, based on the Toll Regulatory Board’s approval.

With truckers, transport groups, other consumer groups and legal personalities, Tutol-Hike (formerly Tutol-Slex) had spearheaded protest actions against the then proposed toll fee hikes in both the South and North expressways. The group has also actively attended the public hearings conducted by the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), hearings which the group later came to describe as bogus for sheer absence of public voice, participation and timely information dissemination..... MORE

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2012/01/26/after-2011-toll-fee-hikes-toll-operators-report-increased-profits/