PPV operators get green light for fuel grant

After some delay, the Transport Authority (TA) has announced that public passenger vehicle (PPV) operators can now apply for the fuel relief grant promised by the Government in the wake of surging petrol prices.

The TA said that the owners of PPVs should apply online at WeCare.gov.jm to obtain the $25,000 gas grant.

The applicants are required to submit a valid Transport Authority road licence, issued no later than April 30 this year, for a contract carriage or a route tax service.

Persons applying for the benefit should also be the primary owner of the vehicle that is licensed and should provide a taxpayer registration number.

The TA said that owners of multiple vehicles registered as contract carriage or route taxis can now breathe a sigh of relief as they are also eligible to receive the grant for each licensed vehicle.

“Where the vehicles are operated under a company, these entities should designate an authorised officer and submit that person’s TRN to collect the funds on behalf of the company,” the TA said in a press statement on Monday.

Finance and the Public Service Minister Dr Nigel Clarke had announced in March that the Government would provide a fuel relief grant for public passenger vehicle operators, to cushion rising costs. The programme will cost about $600 million.

In a recent interview with The Gleaner, president of the Jamaica Association of Transport Owners and Operators, Louis Barton, indicated that the operators of PPVs were frustrated with delays by the Government in providing the gas grant.

He said that the sharp increases in petrol in recent months have had a severe impact on PPV operators, who were struggling to stay afloat.