Uber and Tripid hit speed bumps as the Philippine government cracks down on transportation apps

Transportation tech startups Uberand Tripid are facing regulatory issues in the Philippines.

Interaksyon recently reported the national vehicular regulatory body in the Philippines states these companies violate the law.

Claiming that both Uber and Tripid provide “a public service,” Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) chair Winston Ginez told Interaksyon that in order for Tripid and Uber to operate as a business, they must secure a franchise. “What they are doing is a criminal violation of the Public Service Law,” said Ginez.

This Public Service Law, or Commonwealth Act No. 146, states that the LTFRB “shall have jurisdiction, supervision, and control over all public services and their franchises, equipment, and other properties.” This means that public transport vehicles like jeepneys, buses, and taxis in the Philippines are required to secure a franchise – a permit to operate as a public utility vehicle – from LTFRB before they can use the vehicles as a means for public transport.

Set for a public hearing

This is the reason why taxi hailing apps such as GrabTaxi and Easy Taxi have made their way into the Philippines without much friction. They simply partnered with taxi fleets and operators that already have existing franchises, and then provided them with the technology.

Uber’s methods for recruiting drivers tend to vary city-to-city as far as we can tell. However, it’s clear that as a company, it tends to view its relationship to the driver as the core of its business, rather than its relationship to the livery service. In some cities, clear-cut transportation laws have led the company to reach out to drivers almost exclusively through livery services. However, in cities where private drivers work for themselves or small companies, Uber has been free to recruit drivers on an individual basis.

Whether Uber has partnered with large franchised livery services, individual professional drivers, or drivers that sit somewhere within a grey area, is something we are unsure of. In its official launch yesterday, the company declined to divulge on how it recruits its partners in Manila. [UPDATE 02/14] Uber recently responded to our query saying, “all of its partners have the appropriate license, registration and insurance in place to provide commercial transport under Filipino law.”

Tripid, on the other hand, promotes carpooling in the Philippines to lessen traffic through its app. So some Tripid users are car owners who want to share their vehicle, and others are non-car owners looking for someone to carpool with.

Ginez also told Interaksyon that the two transportation apps will be called to a public hearing to testify about the said ‘violations’.

Tech in Asia reached out to Uber and will update this article pending its response.

On its Facebook page, Tripid states there is no reason to provide a statement at this point because that the order from LTFRB has not been served to them yet. The post on Facebook reads:

We are more than happy to listen to the proposals of the LTFRB or its representatives to further explore initiatives that would help relieve congestion in the metro and improve our public transportation sector.

Transportation challenges remain