By Desiree Kissoon
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill yesterday said that the government will not be entertaining an increase in fares for transport – whether by river, sea or road – at this time.
His statement to Stabroek News came in the wake of arguments by speedboat operators on the Vreed-en-Hoop to Georgetown run that they should be allowed to up fares by $20 in consideration of fuel prices and the rise in cost of other inputs.
According to Edghill, the speedboat owners are beneficiaries of a number of government concessions. He said that the government has removed the excise tax from fuel which resulted in direct benefits to the boat owners. According to him, the owners are also benefiting from the reduced cost of electricity and water because the government was absorbing the increase which resulted when the price of fuel rises.
