Online transportation fare hike caused by the increase in fuel price (BBM) in early September 2022 must be balanced by better services, Rizal Pauzi a public policy observer of Makassar-based Hasanuddin University, said.
Hence, Rizal Pauzi advised the government to not only focus on increasing tariffs, but also paying more attention to other things that make people feel comfortable.
“Because based on the Ability to Pay (ATP) and Willingness to Pay (WTP) studies, one of the reasons people are willing to pay more is for good service quality,” he said here on Saturday.
Pauzi also advised the government to monitor the quality of the vehicles, as well as the identities of the drivers and related vehicles to ensure the safety of passengers.
“So we hope that the government is not only stuck on the tariff issue, but they also need to ensure that this online-based transportation is able to provide quality services. Moreover, the local government obtains local revenue from the driver’s licenses, which is paid by the drivers,” he said .
Meanwhile, the South Sulawesi Provincial Government is also encouraged to review the increase in online taxi fares based on the results of an appropriate study in setting tariffs so that the regulation does not harm the community and related parties.
In South Sulawesi, the increase of four-wheel transportation rental tariff is still being discussed. However, the transportation fare proposed by the Transportation Agency is also considered not to be proportional and is a matter of concern because the fare increase may reach 100 percent.
“If you want to be proportional, the rate increase must be limited. Fuel rates increased by about 20 percent. Therefore, the increase in goods and services that are affected by fuel should also not exceed 20 percent,” he said.
Pauzi suggested that the increase in online transportation fares be between 10-15 percent.
Previously, the increase in tariffs referring to the Decree (SK) of the Governor of South Sulawesi number 1162/IV/2020 concerning the Determination of Lower Limit Tariff and Upper Limit Tariff for Special Lease Transport (ASK) was also discussed.
During a hearing at South Sulawesi Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) office, online transportation organizations proposed increasing the lower limit fare from Rp3,700 to Rp6,000 per kilometer.
Furthermore, the upper limit tariff is also proposed to increase from Rp6,500 to Rp7,800 and the minimum tariff of Rp15,600 per kilometer.
Source: Antara News