LTO taps malls for driver’s license renewal

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) is now directly engaging shopping malls across the country to provide office space for Driver’s License Renewal Offices (DLROs) to provide applicants with more convenient alternatives in renewing their licenses.

Gokongwei-owned Robinsons Malls is the first DLRO partner of the LTO, which launched yesterday its new service improvement program involving the creation of DLROs at its various shopping malls nationwide.

Under its memorandum of agreement with the LTO, Robinsons Malls will provide office space for DLROs at its 24 malls across the country for 10 years. For the first time, the LTO will be dealing directly with mall owners to ensure that all of their malls will open DLROs.

“We congratulate the LTO for its initiative to bring its services closer to the people and to make license renewal more convenient for them,” Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said.

“With various reform and modernization programs being implemented, we can look forward to much-improved services at the LTO,” he added.

“We also thank Robinsons Malls for being the government’s first DLRO partner, which entails waiving valuable rental fees for the use of their mall space,” Abaya pointed out.

Earlier, the LTO has activated 25 sites for releasing of driver’s license cards in Metro Manila, and Regions 3, 4-A, and 8 following the awarding of the drivers’ license card supply contract to Allcard Plastics.

According to LTO Chief Assistant Secretary Alfonso Tan, issuance of drivers’ license cards will be eventually made available at all LTO offices nationwide as “deployment is continuing.” In the meantime, Tan said LTO offices will print licenses during Saturdays and after office hours on weekdays, in order to “erase the current backlog of around 900,000 licenses by early October.”

To recall, the DOTC recently awarded the LTO License Cards Supply Project to Allcard Plastics, whose 336.868million bid was 25.3 percent lower than the 450-million budget for the contract. Based on its supply contract, Allcard will deliver 5 million pieces of license cards to the LTO over a 12-month period. The volume is intended to cover demand for the next three years.

According to the LTO, drivers’ license card printing will now be colorcoded: orange cards will be issued to student drivers, yellow cards to conductors, and blue card to both professional and non-professional drivers.

The LTO issues approximately 1.5 million professional licenses, 1.5 million non-professional licenses and 1.5 million student permits annually.