The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has recently declared a new deadline for the complete phase-out of traditional jeepneys. The new deadline is set for June 30, 2023, following a series of extensions the agency has granted to hear the appeal of traditional jeepney drivers.
Despite several grace periods that the LTFRB has provided in the past, various transport groups are still unhappy about the new deadline.
Major transport group PISTON said that it is ready to support groups planning transport strikes if the government insists on coercing small-time jeepney operators into consolidating individual franchises in the name of modernization in its current “expensive” form, a move that will ultimately take traditional jeepneys off the streets.
Representatives from Manibela, Laban TNVS, and PISTON have raised their concerns about the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) phaseout of traditional jeeps and UV Express. They said that they plan to conduct a “week-long transport strike” from March 6-12 to convince the board to suspend implementation of the Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization Program.
This will be the first significant coordinated strike since full passenger capacity resumed in March 2022 as industries resume their on-site work setup and schools return to face-to-face learning.
Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista has urged transport groups to “sit down and iron out issues concerning the sector” before staging the strike.
Bautista emphasized the importance of dialogue between the operators, LTFRB, and representatives from the Department of Transportation.
In a video released by the Presidential Communications Office, Bautista said that the phase out will only be applied to certain areas where majority of jeepneys have been already upgraded.
He also mentioned that they are working alongside Land Bank and Bank of the Philippine Islands to look for measures on how they can help operators to purchase the modern equipments that the program requires.
PISTON is calling for a “just transition program” into modernization by supporting the local manufacturing industry and allowing the rehabilitation and overhaul of traditional jeepneys to use engines that create fewer carbon emissions.
The transition, according to Floranda, would not only save small-time operators money but would also further develop local industries and create domestic jobs.
“If the LTFRB would not take back the memorandum circular, we will proceed with this, and it’s not only going to be a strike, we will also bring the traditional jeeps and UV express in front of the LTFRB so they could see how big we are,” said Mar Valbuena, the national president for Manibela.
The protests will not only be held in Metro Manila, but the participating groups said that there would also be strikes in Calabarzon and Central Luzon.
If the June 30 deadline is upheld, traditional jeepney operators who do not comply run the risk of getting their franchises revoked.
The deadline also applies to PUVs nationwide, meaning that old PUJ operators within and outside the Metro must adhere to the announcement.
On top of that, these operators must join a transport cooperative before the said date.
According to the LTFRB’s figures, about 25,000 operators have yet to comply with the new PUV Modernization Program (PUVMP) rules and regulations.
