Piston to stage 2-day transport strike

Traditional jeepneys ply their route along Philcoa in Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Tuesday, March 7, 2023. (File photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

MANILA, Philippines — Transport group Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) will stage a two-day nationwide transport strike this week to protest the Dec. 31 deadline for franchise consolidation and phaseout of traditional jeepneys.

The strike will be held from Dec. 14 to 15 and may be extended depending on the government’s response, Piston national president Mody Floranda told a press conference on Monday.

The militant labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno will also join the strike.

Piston and its allies staged a three-day transport strike in late November to protest the public utility vehicle (PUV) modernization program, forcing some schools in Metro Manila to shift to virtual classes.

The Department of Transportation earlier expressed willingness to discuss the other demands of transport groups that are protesting the PUV modernization program except for the franchise consolidation requirement, which it called a “nonnegotiable.”

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has yet to issue a statement on the planned protest.