The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) will no longer give leeway to jeepneys that did not consolidate into cooperatives under the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program as it will apprehend colorum vehicles beginning next week.
According to Joseph Morong’s report in “24 Oras” on Thursday, the LTFRB will set the guidelines soon on the apprehension of unconsolidated jeepneys.
Unconsolidated jeepneys are already considered colorum vehicles as they no longer have the provisional authority to ply their routes after the April 30 consolidation deadline lapsed.
The start of apprehensions coincides with the three-day strike by transport group Manibela against the government’s PUV modernization project from June 10-12.
“Yung mga nagwe-welga po sa kalye, ang sasabihin ko po sa kanila, magkita-kita tayo sa kalye. But make sure you have franchises,” said LTFRB chairperson Teofilo Guadiz.
(Those who will be protesting next week, let’s meet on the streets. But make sure you have franchises.)
According to LTFRB-NCR’s data, 61% or 30,561 of the 49,593 jeepney units in Metro Manila have consolidated. But in the whole country, 81% of jeepney units have participated in the PUVMP.
Meanwhile, the Department of Transportation said that proposals from some lawmakers to give unconsolidated jeepneys one more year to comply with the government’s requirement is impossible to happen.
“When we talk about consolidation, tapos na ‘yun (that’s already over). There is no extension, that is what the president has said,” said DOTr Undersecretary Andy Ortega.
For operators who consolidated their franchises, they agree that it’s time to finally fully implement the PUVMP.
“Kung hindi sila nag-consolidate, kumbaga parang sila yung nakabawas sa kita namin..Unfair naman ‘yun,” said Freddie Hernandez, Taguig Transport Service Cooperative chairperson.
(If they did not consolidate, they are actually affecting our income…That’s unfair to us.)
But transport group Piston remains firm that some unconsolidated jeepneys will still operate despite the warning from the LTFRB.
It added that they would still protest at the Malacanang on Friday to stop the apprehension next week and give some of the drivers another chance to upgrade their units to legally operate.
Manibela, on the other hand, is also pleading to the government to allow drivers to still register their units.
“Tsaka sana yung panawagan po ng Manibela ang tugunan na ma iparehistro pa rin ang aming mga sasakyan at hindi hirap ang mga mananakay at mga drivers/operators kung sakali na madi-displace,” said Mar Valbuena, Manibela president.
(I hope they would listen to our request that we will be given the chance to register our units for the comfort of our commuters and so our drivers/operators will not be displaced.) —Vince Ferreras/LDF, GMA Integrated News
