Transport groups hit PUV modernization program anew in Manila rally

Members of various transport and commuter groups gather at Mendiola Street in Manila on Friday, December 29 to protest of the government’s impending implementation of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program. (Screengrab from a video uploaded by Piston on Facebook)

MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is twisting the narrative on the effects of the Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization Program, transport group Piston said on Friday.

Piston criticized the LTFRB’s readiness for the “transport disaster” that will occur if the government were to push through with the modernization program.

 “The LTFRB is twisting the true state of consolidation and deceiving the public,” Piston said in a statement.

Piston’s statement comes after around 4,000 drivers, operators, and commuters belonging to different groups marched to Mendiola Street in Manila on Friday – two days before the consolidation deadline.

“They are unprepared for the massive job displacement and the loss of public transportation for thousands of commuters,” the group added.

According to Piston, over 31,000 PUVs are yet to apply for consolidation in Metro Manila alone.

This translates to almost 86,000 transport workers displaced if the PUV modernization program would bar unconsolidated operators.

 Piston added that if this were to happen, around 6.2 million commuters will be stranded in Metro Manila alone.

“The blame lies squarely on the Marcos Jr administration, the DOTr [Department of Transportation], and the LTFRB, who seem indifferent to the plight of drivers and commuters,” the transport group said.

Piston reiterated its call to the Supreme Court to expedite its decision on a petition filed to block the December 31 deadline for PUV Modernization Program’s franchise consolidation requirement.

The LTFRB, however, assured Filipinos also on Friday that there will be no transport crisis even if some PUV operators would not consolidate their franchises ahead of the December 31 deadline for franchise consolidation.

While Piston said that about 74 percent of all jeepney units in Metro Manila are not yet consolidated, LTFRB Board Member Mercy Jane Paras-Leynes said that the number of consolidated units is enough to cover Manila’s major thoroughfares.

Meanwhile, to alleviate the problem of joblessness in the transport sector, the Department of Social Welfare and Development said that jeepney drivers affected by the modernization program may avail social assistance in the form of the department’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation.