For QC vice mayor, trikes OK as school buses

Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte expressed reservations over the proposed ban on the use of tricycles as school buses, noting that the three-wheeled vehicles are cheaper and more practical.

In a statement, Belmonte said tricycles, which are under the regulation of local government unit, also offered lower fares and could enter narrow alleys.

She was reacting to earlier pronouncements from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) which raised safety concerns on the use of tricycles for carrying small children, especially when these are overloaded.

“I think what we should do here is to just intensify the enforcement of rules against overloading, ‘colorum,’ and out-of-line tricycles.

I think the tricycle as school service is OK so long as it is not overloading, colorum or out of line,” the official said.

Belmonte said members of the local tricycle drivers and operators associations  have brought up the issue with her.

The LTFRB should first consult with LGUs regarding the proposed ban, the vice mayor added.

To date, more than 24,700 tricycle units are licensed to operate by the city government, while an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 colorum tricycles are plying city streets. — JODEE A. AGONCILLO