The government is attempting to keep inflation within the 4 to 6 percent range by temporarily reducing the cost of travel on Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) buses.
The cost of transportation services is a notable portion of the Consumer Price Index basket and will lead to a monthly inflation rate for November of between 1.0% and 1.5%. This will increase the 12-month point-to-point inflation outturn when compared with the October result.
The Bank of Jamaica’s monetary policy action, supported by fiscal policy as well as a moderation in imported commodity prices, has resulted in a sharp decline in the 12-month point-to-point inflation from a high of 11.8% in April 2022 to 5.1% in October 2023.
The result is a convergence of inflation back to the target range; however, the Bank of Jamaica advises that because of the adjustments in Public Passenger Vehicle fares, it is expecting a reversal of the downward trend in annual inflation starting in November 2023.
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Govt Addressing Inflation by Reducing JUTC Fares
The government is attempting to keep inflation within the 4 to 6 percent range by temporarily reducing the cost of travel on Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) buses.
The cost of transportation services is a notable portion of the Consumer Price Index basket and will lead to a monthly inflation rate for November of between 1.0% and 1.5%. This will increase the 12-month point-to-point inflation outturn when compared with the October result.
The Bank of Jamaica’s monetary policy action, supported by fiscal policy as well as a moderation in imported commodity prices, has resulted in a sharp decline in the 12-month point-to-point inflation from a high of 11.8% in April 2022 to 5.1% in October 2023.
The result is a convergence of inflation back to the target range; however, the Bank of Jamaica advises that because of the adjustments in Public Passenger Vehicle fares, it is expecting a reversal of the downward trend in annual inflation starting in November 2023.
The government says it will therefore provide the JUTC with resources to finance the temporary reductions in public passenger fares. The fare reductions are expected to be in effect for 24 months after which the fares will be adjusted upwards and returned to existing levels.
Therefore, effective January 1, 2024
o Reduction in the regular fare from $100 to $70
o Reduction in the fare for children from $30 to $25
o Reduction in the fare for pensioners from $40 to $30
and effective April 1, 2024
o A further reduction in the regular fare from $70 to $50
o A further reduction in the fare for children from $25 to $20
o A further reduction in the fare for pensioners from $30 to $25
It is expected that for the period January to March of this fiscal year (2023/24) this measure will cost approximately $200 million and for the full year period April 1, 2024 – March 31, 2025, this measure will cost $800 million.
On October 10, 2023, the Government announced a 19% increase in public passenger fares (PPV) (excluding Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) and the Montego Bay Metro (MBM)), effective 15 October 2023. A further 16% increase was also announced to take effect in April 2024.
The government is also importing additional buses for the JUTC’s fleet with the addition of 100 buses. The original consideration was for 200 new buses over two years. The government now says it has upsized that to 300 new buses over three years with the first 100 to arrive during the next fiscal year 2024/25. This is in addition to the new buses that arrived this fiscal year.
20 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses have been ordered through a framework agreement. Six already arrived in early November 2023 and the other 14 are expected by January 2024. These will add to the 50 units recently acquired in August for the State-owned company.
The government is also considering expanding the route offerings of the JUTC to as far as Williamsfield in Manchester and to Albion in St. Thomas.
In 2022, the JUTC operated 18 million revenue passenger trips compared with 16.5 million in the previous year 2021. This resulted in fare income of 1.6 billion dollars when compared with 1.5 billion in the previous year 2021.
The Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) began operations in July 1998 and currently serves routes in the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region (KMTR) comprising the Corporate Area of Kingston and St. Andrew as well as Portmore and Spanish Town in St. Catherine.
