DUMAGUETE CITY — Ride-hailing platform Maxim has launched tricycle, pabili, and delivery services in Dumaguete City, allowing residents to book tricycle rides through a mobile app with fares calculated before the trip begins, the company announced.
The service enables passengers to be picked up directly from their location rather than at a designated tricycle terminal. Pabili and delivery fees start at PHP 10 and cover groceries, meals, documents, and parcels, according to Maxim.
How Bookings and Fares Work on the App
According to the company, fares are computed in advance based on the passenger's pickup and drop-off points, eliminating the curb-side fare negotiations that are common in Dumaguete's tricycle culture. Driver-partners receive booking requests nearest their current location, a system Maxim says reduces idle travel and fuel consumption.
Drivers may decline orders and can continue serving regular passengers along their existing routes, the company said. The arrangement is designed to supplement, rather than replace, a driver-partner's usual operations.
Safety Features Built Into the Platform
Maxim said the app includes an SOS button, live trip tracking, masked in-app calls and messaging between riders and driver-partners, ride monitoring, and round-the-clock customer support.
These features are consistent with safety requirements the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has applied to accredited transport network companies operating four-wheeled vehicles nationwide.
Maxim Dumaguete Head Cites Local Economic Goals
Shem Ehurango, head of Maxim Dumaguete, framed the launch in terms of community benefit and economic support for local transport workers and businesses.
"Maxim is committed to improving urban mobility and supporting the local economy in Dumaguete City. By providing accessible tricycle, pabili, and delivery services, we aim to make everyday transportation and errands more convenient while supporting local driver-partners and businesses," Ehurango said.
Tricycle Fares Are Set by the City Council, Not the App
A critical regulatory distinction underlies the launch: tricycle fares in Dumaguete are not set by Maxim — they are the legal prerogative of the Sangguniang Panlungsod, or city council.
The LTFRB lost franchising authority over tricycles-for-hire in 1992, when the power was devolved to local government units under the Local Government Code. Under Section 458 of that code, the city council has the authority to issue, amend, suspend, or cancel Motorized Tricycle Operator's Permits, to fix and periodically adjust fares after a public hearing, and to prescribe zones of service.
This means the fare amounts displayed on the Maxim app must conform to whatever rates the Dumaguete City council has officially set — and the app's dynamic pickup model must also be reconciled with the permit system's fixed service zones.
Maxim's Regulatory History in the Philippines
Maxim's entry into Dumaguete comes after a period of regulatory friction at the national level. In January 2023, the LTFRB publicly identified Maxim as operating transport network vehicle services without accreditation, noting it was then active in 41 cities and municipalities across the country. The board coordinated with the Department of Information and Communications Technology to restrict the app and warned the public against using it.
Maxim's local operator, Taxsee Philippines Inc., subsequently obtained Transport Network Company accreditation from the LTFRB. The company has since been included in national pilot programs for motorcycle-taxi transport in Metro Manila and Cagayan de Oro, according to the company.
That accreditation, however, covers only four-wheeled transport. Tricycles remain entirely outside LTFRB jurisdiction, falling instead under the authority of each local government unit.
What the Launch Means for Commuters and Drivers
For Dumaguete commuters, the service offers price certainty and doorstep pickup in a city where tricycles are the dominant mode of public transport and fares have traditionally been negotiated on the spot. For tricycle operators, the platform offers access to bookings outside the conventional terminal queue.
The unresolved regulatory question is whether app-based dispatch and dynamic pickup points are compatible with a permit system built around fixed zones and council-approved fares — a question that only the Dumaguete City government has the authority to answer.
Part of a Broader Philippine Expansion
The Dumaguete launch is part of Maxim's continued expansion in the Philippines. The company says it now covers 23 cities in the country since beginning operations in Cebu in 2020, making Dumaguete one of its most recent additions to that network.
By the Numbers
- PHP 10 — starting fee for pabili and delivery services (groceries, meals, documents, parcels)
- 23 cities — Maxim's current Philippine coverage as of the Dumaguete launch
- 2020 — year Maxim began Philippine operations, starting in Cebu
- 41 cities and municipalities — extent of Maxim's operations at the time of the January 2023 LTFRB accreditation warning
- 1992 — year franchising authority over tricycles was devolved to local government units under the Local Government Code
Why This Matters
Tricycles are Dumaguete City's primary mode of public transport, and Maxim's launch introduces app-based fare computation and doorstep pickup to a system where fares have long been informally negotiated. The central regulatory issue — whether Maxim's dynamic dispatch model aligns with the city council's legal authority over tricycle fares and service zones — remains open, and the Sangguniang Panlungsod will need to address it. The outcome will determine whether app-based tricycle booking can operate with full legal clarity in Dumaguete.
Photo credit: Photo courtesy of Maxim Philippines/Facebook