‘Colorum’ van rams a DOTr vehicle as driver escapes from apprehension

Roxas Boulevard  (INQUIRER file photo / LEO M. SABANGAN II)

MANILA, Philippines — A ‘colorum’ (unregistered) van was caught on video fleeing from Department of Transportation (DOTr) operatives after it was apprehended near Heritage Hotel along Roxas Boulevard on Wednesday evening.

According to a report provided to INQUIRER.net by DOTr – Special Action and Intelligence Committee for Transportation (SAICT), the Toyota Hiace rammed the DOTr operatives’ vehicle as the Hiace driver fled the scene and was able to successfully escape.

READ: Colorum PUV operators fined P20.8 M in December 2023 – DOTr 

“The unidentified driver of vehicle-2 [Toyota Hiace] did not cooperate when requested for his driver(’s) license and registration document and instead, he suddenly swerved to the left direction,” the traffic investigation report read.

“The driver of vehicle-1 [DOTr] tried to chase vehicle-2. However, the latter was able to make a good escape towards (the) south direction,” it added.

The report further said the incident is currently being investigated after it was reported to Pasay City’s traffic sector.

In a separate post on Facebook, SAICT said the event did not injure anyone on the scene.

“Meanwhile, the operatives call on colorum operators to not put their passengers’ lives in danger and follow traffic regulations,” the post read in Filipino.

After the incident, an SAICT official told INQUIRER.net that the operatives continued their operations and were able to impound two colorum buses.

The DOTr previously said it had collected a total of P20.8 million in penalties from colorum public utility vehicles in December 2023.