PROFIT GRABBED?: Taxis Struggle With Low Income Amid Grab’s Entry in Iloilo City

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor and Francis Allan Angelo

Taxi drivers in Iloilo City are raising concerns over declining daily earnings, blaming the rise of cars from the ride-hailing app Grab for the drop in income.

Drivers report spending long hours at terminals waiting for passengers, yet many struggle to earn PHP 500 a day, down from the PHP 1,000 they used to make before Grab Philippines launched its GrabCar service in Iloilo in March 2023.

Some drivers now take home around PHP 300 daily, which they say is insufficient to cover their expenses.

“We used to earn PHP 1,000, but now most of us are just happy to go home with PHP 300,” one driver shared in Hiligaynon.

The growth of Grab taxis, which require passengers to book rides through a mobile app, has significantly reduced the number of passengers hailing traditional taxis, drivers claim.

In an interview with Aksyon Radyo Iloilo, Joan Yoshida, regional operations head of Grab Philippines Western Visayas, explained that Grab operates under strict regulations.

“A person can only own up to three units,” Yoshida said, citing rules from the Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVS).

She clarified that Grab cars must be booked through the app and cannot pick up passengers from the street.

“If anyone attempts to hail or negotiate with a Grab car, once reported, that vehicle is banned immediately. We do not tolerate that,” she said.

Yoshida also emphasized that each booking through the app provides passengers with details such as the driver’s name, car model, plate number, and fare, ensuring transparency and safety.

The frustrations among taxi drivers have reignited debates about the impact of ride-hailing services on traditional transportation. Many drivers feel they are being pushed out of the market, with fewer opportunities to earn a sustainable income.

‘I Will Resign If Proven’

Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas denied allegations that he owns a large fleet of vehicles registered with Grab.

“I have no units in Grab. If they can prove it, I will immediately resign my position,” the mayor said in a statement on Tuesday, October 15.

His statement followed a Facebook post by former Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog on October 10, where Mabilog claimed a single individual in Iloilo City owns a substantial number of Grab cars.

“The introduction of 200 Grab cars to compete with long-established taxis would be acceptable if they weren’t owned by a single individual. What will happen to the struggling jeepney and taxi drivers?” Mabilog wrote.

Mabilog did not explicitly name Treñas in his post, where he outlined several issues brought to his attention during his return to Iloilo City after seven years of exile.

Councilor Romel Duron, former chairperson of the city council’s transport committee and current legal counsel of Grab, defended Treñas and dismissed the claims as false.

“There’s no truth to the claim, and it’s impossible,” Duron said, adding that no one with the surname “Treñas” owns Grab units in the city. However, he acknowledged that someone with the surname “Ganzon” owns two units.

Duron stressed that the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) limits each operator to a maximum of three units, making the accusation practically impossible.

He also assured that the LTFRB’s background checks on ride-hailing operators are strict, reducing the chances of someone using a “dummy owner” to bypass regulations.

Maximum of Three Units Only

LTFRB-6 hearing officer Atty. Salvador Altura Jr. explained that under LTFRB Board Resolution No. 185-2022, an individual can only own a maximum of three units for TNVS like Grab.

A 2017 LTFRB memorandum also reiterated this restriction, stating that “all TNVS operators shall be limited to a maximum of three authorized units. All authorized units in excess shall be excluded.”

Fleet operators with excess units are allowed to use those vehicles for other transport services, such as tourist transport, shuttle services, or air-conditioned taxi operations.

This limitation was first imposed to address concerns about some operators running large fleets under ride-hailing services like Uber and Grab.

Currently, 900 out of the 1,200 TNVS slots allocated in Western Visayas are held by Grab.

In May, the LTFRB opened an additional 1,650 slots for TNVS in the region, with 1,600 set for 2023 and the remaining 50 allocated for 2025.

The LTFRB said this increase was needed “to respond to the needs of modern commuters and address the growing demand for transport services in an efficient and responsive manner.”

TNVS operating in Iloilo City now include Grab and the Unified Transport Operations League, a Filipino transport network company that expanded to the city in August.