LTFRB lauds GenSan’s public transport modernization efforts
GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has lauded the city’s progress in the past two years towards the full implementation of the public transportation modernization program.
In a meeting with city officials and leaders of transport groups here Friday, LTFRB Chairman Martin Delgra said the city has gained headway in its efforts to rationalize and modernize local public transportation in partnership with transport groups.
He specifically cited the city government’s efforts to align its transport plan with national government programs while safeguarding the interest of the local transport sector and commuters.
Delgra acknowledged that the modernization of public transportation is a challenging process and the government needs the help of all concerned sectors to achieve it.
“Importante wala’y mabiyaan (No one must be left behind),” he said in a statement.
The city was the first local government unit in the country to complete its Local Public Transport Route Plan (LTPRP), a requirement under the national government’s public utility vehicle modernization program (PUVMP).
It received a notice of compliance from the LTFRB in June 2018, a year after the launch of the PUVMP.
Delgra commended the city government for supporting the transition of local transport groups towards modernization, especially in the acquisition of compliant units like electronic jeepneys.
The city government had opened a subsidy program under the Barangay Entrepreneur Support and Trust Ordinance that may be availed of by local transport cooperatives in their modernization efforts.
Lawyer Arnel Zapatos, the city administrator, assured the local government’s continued support to help fast-track the modernization of the city’s public transportation sector.
He said they were working on the clustering of tricycles into “prearranged and pre-studied zones” to rationalize their operations.
Zapatos said they were also aligning the city’s Sustainable Urban Infrastructure Development Master Plan with the requirements of the public transport system.
Late last year, the city
government helped facilitate a fleet management seminar to educate drivers and operators on properly managing their cooperatives.
Zapatos added that they would convene stakeholders of the city’s transport sector later this month for a Transport Operators and Drivers Association or Toda Summit. (PNA)