Unconsolidated PUJs can ply select routes until January 31

MANILA, Philippines —  The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has allowed unconsolidated public utility vehicles (PUVs) to continue plying select routes for a month after the Dec. 31 deadline.

Under new guidelines, the LTFRB allowed unconsolidated individual operators to operate until Jan. 31, but a show-cause order will be issued against them for failure to comply with the consolidation requirement.

The LTFRB issued memorandum circular 2023-052, which it said will ensure adequate supply of public transport on affected routes following the consolidation.

Consolidated transportation service entities (TSE) can continue to operate under their existing provisional authorities until December 2024 until the issuance of their franchises.

The TSEs will have their certificate of public convenience or franchises valid for seven years if they have compliant units in their fleet while those that do not have brand new units shall have a validity of five years.

The board said that the provisional authority and franchise of individual operators in routes that have more than a 60 percent consolidation rate shall be revoked and they will no longer be allowed to operate.

The LTFRB will only allow unconsolidated units to continue operations in some areas, but only for routes with less than 60 percent rate or those with no consolidated TSEs.

The LTFRB said that operators who failed to file an application for consolidation before the deadline will no longer be allowed to organize into an entity or join existing cooperatives.

Under the guidelines that the Department of Transportation (DOTr) issued in 2017, PUV operators and drivers must form transport cooperatives or similar legal entities so they could join the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).

Data from the LTFRB showed that around 70,000 PUVs have not consolidated and could have their provisional authority or certificate of public convenience revoked on Jan. 1.

SC: Answer petition

The Supreme Court (SC) yesterday ordered the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the LTFRB to comment on the petition seeking to block the implementation and ultimately void certain government orders related to the PUVMP.

In a resolution, the SC directed the two government agencies to file their comment within 10 days from notice on the petition filed by group Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston).

The order came three days before the Dec. 31 deadline that requires PUV operators to consolidate.

The Court has not yet acted on the petition, as it wants to get the side of the respondents first, which is part of the procedure.

In its petition, Piston asked the SC to issue a restraining order to prevent the DOTr and LTFRB from implementing the modernization plan, which will begin on Dec. 31, especially the mandatory franchise consolidation, until the petition is resolved.

The group also wants the high tribunal to declare the order formalizing the modernization plan and circulars for the consolidation as null and void.

The PUVMP, which dates back to 2017, seeks to modernize the public transportation sector and replace PUVs 15 years old or older – those deemed not roadworthy by the standards of the Land Transportation Office (LTO), with modern vehicles, or those that have at least a Euro 4-compliant engine to lessen pollution.

The LTFRB earlier issued a memorandum circular revoking permits of unconsolidated operators by Jan. 1, prompting Piston and another transport group Manibela to stage several protests and transport strikes.

President Marcos himself said there will be no further extension for franchise consolidation, saying that the government “cannot let the minority cause further delays.”

The government earlier gave a one-month grace period for the existing PUV franchise holders to consolidate under one cooperative that will be granted a franchise under the modernization plan.

On the same day as the SC order, Piston and its legal representatives filed before the SC a supplemental motion seeking to expedite the decision on the petition for a TRO.

It noted that millions of drivers, operators and their families, as well as commuters “will experience a severe impact on their income and livelihood should the franchise of thousands of PUV operations be cancelled on Jan. 1, 2024.”

“The petitioners likewise pray for the immediate issuance of a TRO to prevent the grave and irreparable injury that the petitioners, the jeepney drivers and operators, their families, the commuters and the public in general will suffer,” the motion read.

Imee: Deadly deadlines

Meanwhile Sen. Imee Marcos has urged the DOTr to take back the Dec. 31 deadline for its jeepney modernization program, as she hit the agency for threatening drivers and operators with “deadly deadlines.”

She urged all parties to go back to the drawing board to come up with a program with more affordable jeepney units.

The modern jeepney at P2.5 million per unit is also expensive for the ordinary jeepney driver, who also has to grapple with high fuel costs, Marcos said.

“Who doesn’t want a new vehicle? But with the high cost of living, how many can afford one?” she asked. “The government subsidy of P210,000 to P280,000 is just a fraction of the P2.5-million cost of a new Euro-4 PUV.”

The senator also questioned the need for drivers and operators to be consolidated into cooperatives as part of the program.

“Why should thousands of operators and drivers be forced to become members of transport cooperatives? Having been owners and small entrepreneurs, will they become mere employees in a coop?” Marcos asked.

“If an operator or driver takes out a loan, will this be guaranteed by the coop? If loan payments become problematic, will the coop answer for them, or will the bank tow away the vehicle subject to the loan?” she added.

Marcos asked if the use of modern jeepneys would increase the transport fare.

“Complex as these issues are, we would do well to listen to the grievances of PUV operators, drivers, and commuters,” she said. – Daphne Galvez, Marc Jayson Cayabyab