MNTC honors drivers who adhere to highest standards of road safety

MANILA, Philippines – For many, the words “driver” and “safety” are oxymoron, in the same way – as they say in jest – “military” and “intelligence” are incompatible. And yet, truth to tell, there are many military minds gifted with an abundance of brain cells, and there are drivers who are exemplars of road safety.

For some years now, the NLEXcellence Safety Awards have drawn from our millions of drivers around the country the best and the finest of them all.

In fact, for having disciplined and law-abiding drivers who adhere to the highest standards of road safety, select bus and trucking companies were recently proclaimed as the 2015 NLEXcellence Safety Awardees for Driver’s Professionalism by the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC), builder and concessionaire of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).

The five awardees are Baliwag Transit Inc., Fil-Em Transport Services Co. Inc., Giga RSB Trucking Services, J&J Midtrans Corp., and RVL Movers Corp.

“The NLEXcellence Safety Awards is a yearly not just our way of thanking the top NLEX users, our best business partners,” says Rodrigo E. Franco, MNTC president and CEO. “It is a way of honoring NLEX users who share MNTC’s passion for road safety, who keep their vehicles properly maintained at all times, whose drivers follow all the rules and regulations, and adhere to the highest standards of safety while driving.”

The NLEXcellence Safety Awards is an annual awards program that the MNTC launched in 2013 to encourage trucking and bus companies using the tollway to practice the highest standards of road safety.

“However, we expect motorists, particularly the truck and bus drivers using the NLEX, to also do their part,” Franco explains. “Safety is a basic need, and, at the end of the day, we all want to come home to our families safe.”

One of the biggest bus companies in the Philippines, Baliwag Transit services routes that connect Metro Manila to several destinations in Central and Northern Luzon. It was founded by Victoria Santiago Vda. de Tengco, a native of Baliuag, a town in Bulacan that gave the company its name.

“It’s really an honor to receive another NLEXcellence Safety Award, because it tells us that we’re doing our jobs right,” beams Jon-Jon Tengco, Baliwag Transit operations manager. “And we’re particularly happy to be included among this year’s awardees in the Driver’s Professionalism category because, being one of the largest bus companies in the country, we take pride in having defensive bus drivers who are committed to give the best in customer service.”

This year’s NLEXcellence Safety Award is already the second for the company which was chosen an awardee for Excellence in Vehicle Quality in 2013, the first time MNTC held the awards program.

In the same vein, Fil-Em Transport Services (FTS) also carefully screens the drivers it hires. According to Ferdie Abalos, FTS president, this is a key reason the company’s customer service has remained consistently high for over three decades.

“For us, the ideal driver is one who is focused, disciplined and alert,” Abalos says.

Fil-Em Transport, located in Pasig, mainly caters to clients that needs to transport consumer goods and pharmaceutical products.

From a consumer goods trucker, we have a cement trucker. Bulacan-based Giga RSB Trucking Services is a partner hauler of Lafarge, a leading cement manufacturer in the country. Its 217 drivers regularly traverse NLEX to bring raw materials to Lafarge’s cement factories and to deliver bags of the finished products to cement and aggregate users in various sites of Luzon.

“Safety is our first priority,” sums up Reynante Bautista, Giga RSB Trucking owner and general manager. “All our drivers undergo training in defensive driving and troubleshooting. We see to it that each of them is mentally and physically fit before any trip.”

Inspections are also regularly conducted to make sure every vehicle is roadworthy. What’s more, a system of pre-departure checks on the vehicle is carried out by the designated driver before their trips.

“We also provide our drivers with personal protective pieces of equipment that include high-visibility clothing, helmets and safety glasses,” Bautista adds.

It’s safety even for the long-haul for J&J Midtrans Corp., a Laguna-based trucking company with a fleet of over 90 trucks. It transports consumer goods to the long and winding road from Cavite and Ilocos Norte.

To maintain high quality services, the company rigorously screens its drivers before hiring. Then the drivers attend regular seminars on defensive driving and troubleshooting.

“Our drivers are trained to conduct a thorough check-up of their trucks before every trip,” reveals Edmund Rey del Rosario, J&J Midtrans junior account officer. “They are also duty-bound to keep their vehicles clean and well-maintained.”

Before a long drive, drivers as well as their helpers, undergo a medical check-up. “That’s just as well in J&J Midtrans. We make sure our drivers are well rested before we send them on trips,” Del Rosario says. “For this purpose, we’ve set-up a barracks inside our compound.”

Help complete the supply chain. That’s what RVL Movers Corp. does. Family owned RVL has been in the trucking business since 1995, and meets all kinds of shipping and transport needs, from simple pick-and-drop engagements to assuring customers to complete its supply chain.

With a workforce of over 250 employees, it pays close attention to their drivers from hiring date, who first of all must hold a professional driver’s license. Before hiring, they pass a written exam, an actual driving test and a physical examination.