Tagbilaran City Mayor Jane Cajes-Yap signed an ordinance Friday lowering the minimum tricycle fare from P20 pesos to P15 pesos, but implementation will be delayed to July 27 after the measure missed a newspaper’s publication deadline, a city councilor said.

Councilor Leonides “Edi” Borja, chairman of the city council’s Committee on Public Utilities and author of the ordinance, said the measure would not appear in this Sunday’s newspaper publication because the Office of the Sangguniang Panlungsod Secretary submitted it after the printing cutoff.

As a result, the original July 20 target implementation date will no longer push through, Borja said.

The new fare is expected to take effect July 27, 2026bonce publication and other legal requirements are completed.

The council approved the measure July 14 as Proposed Ordinance No. 30-26, Series of 2026, amending the city’s Traffic and Transportation Code.

Vice Mayor Adam Relson Jala presided over the session.

Under the ordinance, the minimum fare for regular passengers will be P15 pesos, plus 3 pesos for every succeeding kilometer.

Senior citizens, students and persons with disabilities will pay a minimum fare of P12 pesos, plus 2.40 pesos per succeeding kilometer.

The ordinance allows the council to adjust the per-kilometer rate through a resolution based on fuel price movements, though the P15-peso base fare can only be changed through another ordinance.

The current P20-peso minimum fare remains in effect citywide until publication and other legal requirements are completed.

OVERCHARGING

Tricycle drivers who overcharge passengers may have their driving privileges revoked, a local tricycle operators and drivers association said during a hearing at City Hall.

The group, known as TODA, said overcharging violates the law and that it would monitor its members’ compliance.

Participants also discussed fares at the city port, agreeing that chartered trips for passengers waiting in line should not exceed the equivalent of three passenger fares.

TODA urged drivers to continue giving fare discounts to senior citizens, persons with disabilities and students, saying the discounts are a right these groups are entitled to.

Some drivers proposed adding only P1 peso per succeeding kilometer, saying a higher rate would burden students and senior citizens without a steady income.

A tiered fare structure tied to fluctuating fuel prices was also floated, but TODA and the city council agreed instead on a flat P15-peso base fare, with only the per-kilometer rate subject to adjustment.

TODA proposed raising the per-kilometer charge to P3 pesos from the previous P2 pesos.

The council has yet to decide whether the increase will be P1 peso or P3 pesos, a decision expected Tuesday during the council’s weekly session.