Govt will pay the base fees for taxis, minibuses, carriers, bus operators and stall fees for market vendors

There is good news for market vendors, taxi, minibus, carrier and bus operators as the Government will be paying their stall and base fees.

Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says to support all casual and full-time market vendors in Fiji and provide financial relief across the country, $2.6 million is allocated to pay the full market stall fees for one year from 1st August 2021 to 31st July 2022 for the benefit of around 8,000 vendors.

Sayed-Khaiyum says if you are selling in a market, your fees are paid and you can keep more of your income, use it to sustain your family, use it to build your business, and lower your prices if you think it helps you sell and earn more.

He further says the Government will also put aside an allocation of $2.5 million to pay base fees for taxis, minibuses, carriers and buses for one year, also to cushion the burden brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and the lowered demand for passenger travel that has hit the bottom-line of public service vehicle drivers.

Sayed-Khaiyum adds in relation to fees, they will also be removing the LTA alteration-of-records fee to make it easier for Fijians to change their records held by the LTA.

He says the Government will pay the driving license and defensive driving fees for all taxi drivers, bus drivers, mini-bus drivers and carrier drivers who are up for renewals in the next financial year while Government will also pay the wheel tax and road user levy for tractors and golf carts for 12 months.

Sayed-Khaiyum says they are removing municipal taxi bases and stands and replacing them with a new concept of ‘open taxi ranks’, which will allow taxis to operate more freely and efficiently within their zones.

He further says with the removal of municipal taxi bases and stands, they will also be removing the various base, stand and station fees that public service vehicle permit holders currently pay that covers taxi drivers, bus drivers, and minibus drivers and replacing them with an annual PSV levy paid for by all PSV permit holders except rental permit holders and those who have paid these fees already will be reimbursed.

Sayed-Khaiyum also says the new PSV levy will be collected and placed in a specific trust fund that will be used for the development and maintenance of PSV bases, stands and stations.

Government will also be waiving the 50 percent additional penalty charged on Traffic Infringement Notices for personal motor vehicle infringements incurred from 15 July 2021 for unemployed Fijians.

These are for basic infringements such as speeding, red-light traffic infringement and other infringements that do not involve illegal operations.

Sayed-Khaiyum says these individuals will be given a grace period from 1st August 2021 to 31st July 2022 to come forward and clear their principal Traffic Infringement Notices amounts.