LTFRB orders lower TNVS surge pricing

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December 14, 2025 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has ordered a temporary adjustment that lowers surge pricing for transport network vehicle service or TNVS units during peak hours and the holiday rush, the LTFRB said.

The reduced surge rate will be implemented from Dec. 17 to Jan. 4 next year, according to LTFRB Chairperson Vigor Mendoza.

Surge pricing was originally designed to balance supply and demand by encouraging more TNVS drivers to operate in high-demand periods.

However, the LTFRB noted that the lack of clear parameters on fare computation under Memorandum Circular 2019-036 resulted to numerous passenger complaints.

Mendoza said the newly issued MC 2025-056 addresses this concern by setting specific parameters on how surge computation should be applied.

The memorandum states that surge pricing must not exceed the sum of the per-kilometer rate and the per-minute charge under the TNVS fare matrix.

Current flagdown rates are P35 for hatchbacks and sub-compacts, P45 for sedans, P55 for AUVs and P145 for premium units. Per-kilometer charges range from P13 to P36, while per-minute travel time is charged at P2 for most units and P4 for premium vehicles.

“We heard the complaints and we also feel the sentiments raised by those in the TNVS sector. That is why we immediately acted on this in response to the instruction of President Marcos and (Transportation) Secretary (Giovanni) Lopez to come up with a guideline on the computation of TNVS fares,” Mendoza said.

The LTFRB provided a sample computation when applying the per-kilometer rate and per-minute charge under the TNVS fare matrix.

“If a car traveled five kilometers and the travel time is 10 minutes, the passenger should pay P75 for the per-kilometer rate and P20 for the travel time or a total of P95, plus the flag down rate of P45,” the agency said.

Following the computation, the LTFRB said “price surging must not exceed P95 for the TNVS car since the basic computation in MC 2025-056 says it should not exceed the per-kilometer rate and per-minute travel time in the fare matrix.”

According to Mendoza, the memorandum also protects driver income by prohibiting transport network companies (TNC) to take commissions from the surge component of the fares.

“The TNCs shall not collect any share, commission or impose a service fee derived from the surge price component of the TNVS fare during the implementation of this memorandum circular,” a part of the memo reads.

Mendoza said the LTFRB has directed TNVS operators and TNCs to recalibrate their fare-computation algorithms on or before Dec. 17.