Although having to pay an additional dollar or 50 cents per litre for Super and Premium gasoline or diesel will heavily impact the profits of taxi drivers, many of them say they will not seek to take it back from the pockets of their passengers, especially at this time.
Finance Minister Colm Imbert announced the increases to the fuel prices with immediate effect in Monday’s Budget presentation.
Commuters expect this to impact the cost of travelling to and from their destinations. Yesterday, however, taxi drivers seemed to be not yet ready to adjust their fares.
“You have the travelling public, that kind of crazy to increase. (Sangre) Grande is already 20, over here (Arima) is 9 dollars, what we going to go to, 20 dollars to the travelling public, people carrying their children to school, Christmas ain’t even come yet, look what they do,” Arima taxi driver Trevor Brathwaithe said.
Over on the Port-of-Spain to Chaguanas and San Fernando taxi stands, drivers felt the same.
“We cannot increase fares again... the majority of the passengers that we bring backwards and forward are public servants, they begging for an increase and they can’t get it,” a Port-of-Spain to Chaguanas taxi driver who asked to be identified only as John said.
Port-of-Spain to Chaguanas Taxi Association president Miguel Dollabaille.
Drivers for that route raised their fees from $11 to $15 last year and it is why Port-of-Spain to Chaguanas Taxi Association president Miguel Dollabaille said an increase will not be on the table now.
“I doh see it in the future, well so soon that is and we have to take into consideration that salaries not really increasing, so we still trying,” he said.
He said with the last $4 increase, they catered for further adjustments to the fuel subsidy but admitted that two hikes in months were difficult on many drivers.
In April during the Mid-Year Budget review, the price of Super and Premium gasoline increased by one dollar per litre to $6.75 and $5.97, diesel went up 50 cents to $3.91 and kerosene went up to $3.50.
As of Monday afternoon, the prices of Premium and Super gasoline cost $7.75 and $6.97 per litre, diesel was $4.41 per litre and kerosene was $4.50 per litre.
For drivers using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) or diesel, like Andre Morrison, the increase will not affect them as much.
“The cost of fuel throughout the world going up so we have to endure the same thing in Trinidad but Diesel has just gone up by 50 cents so we have not had any update discussion about raising the fares,” Morrison, who works the Port-of-Spain to San Fernando route, told Guardian Media, adding he expected Monday’s announcement.
It costs passengers $22 to go from PoS to San Fernando by taxi.
However, Morrison’s colleague, Junior Simplesimon, who uses gasoline, said they will have to meet soon to decide what will be their next move.
“It becomes harder for me... we have to have a consensus of all the drivers,” he said.
Commuters board a San Fernando taxi on Broadway, Port-of-Spain, yesterday.
Drivers on the PoS-St James route also said they recently raised their fares to $6 and may not do so again anytime soon.
But meetings are imminent for maxi taxi drivers.
President of the Route One Maxi Taxi association Ian Hewitt said they will discuss the fuel hike tomorrow. He said they raised their fees in the last year and it now costs commuters from Port-of-Spain to Diego Martin or Petit Valley $6.
Route Two Maxi Taxi Association president Linus Phillip, whose members mostly operate along the Priority Bus Route, meanwhile said they will do the same and meet with members before making a decision.
“This is what we normally do with every budget,” Phillip said.
But he told commuters not to worry, as they usually endure the increase several times before raising their prices. The last time was less than a year ago on November 1, he said.
