Minimum inconvenience
With just over a week to go before the deadline, 313 routes in the National Capital Region still lack a consolidated transport service entity, according to data from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board. After a one-month grace period, the LTFRB says it will no longer give another extension of the deadline, as it cited a 76.6 percent consolidation rate nationwide. By Feb. 1, more than 30,000 public utility vehicles nationwide will be considered “colorum” or illegal.
If the LTFRB proves true to its word, traditional jeepneys will be apprehended if found plying those 313 routes beginning Feb. 1. LTFRB data showed that only 238 routes in the National Capital Region have a consolidation rate of over 60 percent while 306 have a rate of less than 60 percent. The LTFRB regional office in the NCR said these routes are considered secondary and duplicate.
Still, commuters are worried about the availability of mass transport by Feb. 1. The inadequacy of mass transport facilities in the NCR and neighboring areas has led many households to purchase at least one vehicle, even on long installment with high interest.
The LTFRB has given assurance that it is coordinating with local government units as well as national agencies particularly the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and the Philippine National Police to provide additional mass transport facilities as traditional jeepneys are phased out from major thoroughfares.
Apart from reducing air pollution, the PUV modernization program aims to ease traffic by putting an end to the so-called boundary system, under which a PUV driver’s earnings are based on the number of passengers picked up. This has meant long waits for passengers at numerous spots along routes, and PUV drivers stopping even in the middle of the street to pick up a single passenger. Consolidation also aims to make the deployment of PUVs more efficient.
PUV drivers and operators, however, have long balked about what they deem to be the steep cost of the modern jeepneys that meet emission requirements even if these are more energy-efficient. Unmoved, the government has announced that is readying additional impounding areas in the NCR, Central Luzon and Southern Tagalog for unconsolidated PUV units. With the government bent on proceeding with the PUV modernization, it should ensure that the implementation will cause the least inconvenience to the public.