THE CITY Transport and Traffic Management Office (CTTMO) will deploy enforcers to the Davao International Airport for stricter monitoring following recurring complaints of taxi drivers charging exorbitant and fixed rates.
In an interview with Madayaw Dabaw on Apr. 23, CTTMO head Dionisio Abude said deputized enforcers will be stationed at the airport “to ensure proper taxi identification and taxi compliance with local and national laws.”
“We will deploy personnel to check on drivers to see if they have IDs, their PUV IDs are not expired and if their PUV ID is not fake,” Abude said.
Abude added that passengers will also be given a paper containing the information of the taxi unit number and the driver. The same numbers will also be given to drivers at the entrance and exit to ensure the accuracy of the transaction.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board XI, Land Transportation Office, and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) will also send deputized personnel to assist the CTTMO.
“CAAP will also monitor if the vehicle was checked at the entrance, and will also check if those taxi drivers are authorized to enter the airport. This will be the activity that we will be conducting today, and for the coming days,” he added.
During the meeting with stakeholders, they were able to identify the modus operandi of taxi drivers.
For instance, taxi drivers waiting outside the airport rely on a canvasser; second, they receive authorization to enter the airport and solicit passengers at a fixed rate; and third are transactions done by canvassers posing as passengers and dropped off at the taxi lane.
Abude stressed that the office is in the process of creating information drives and materials for the public’s awareness.
