PUBLIC SERVICE VEHICLE (PSV) OPERATORS are looking for a major ease in Tuesday’s Financial Statement and Budgetary proposals.
The call for duty-free concessions is not new, but members of the Alliance Owners of Public Transport (AOPT) think the time is perfect for Minister of Finance Chris Sinckler to give them that much needed break.
Speaking to the WEEKEND NATION yesterday, AOPT president Roy Raphael said the almost 50 per cent saving the duty-free concession would bring is a long time in coming. According to him, a new ZR vehicle costs in the region of $150 000, while a new minibus can cost them $375 000.
“PSVs have long toiled hard, but without the benefits of the duty-free concessions which regular taxis get. We contribute to the economy of Barbados tremendously and yet we are not recognised for what we do. When something goes wrong and when there are incidents of bad behaviour, there is a lot of criticism, but the good that PSVs do is not generally recognised,” public relations officer Mark Griffith said. (YB)
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