THE LAND Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Tuesday said it is keeping an eye on the roadworthiness of jeepneys under its modernization program through private emission testing centers.
This after Senator Mary Grace Natividad Poe-Llamanzares asked the agency to tap state lenders to help fund the modernization program.
At a Senate public service committee hearing, LTFRB Chairman Teofilo E. Guadiz III said the government would use these testing centers to certify jeepneys for road safety ahead of cooperatives’ vehicle modernization obligations once transport routes are finalized by 2026.
“We should also focus on the Clean Air Act,” he told senators. “These are the private emission testing centers and private motor vehicle inspection centers. How do these jeepneys pass registration? They emit harmful black smoke.”
LTFRB Undersecretary Jesus Ferdinand D. Ortega told DZBB radio at the weekend his agency aims to come up with at least half of the final transport routes for modern jeepneys by the end of this year and finish these routes by 2026. He said about 15% of routes have been completed.
The routes will determine the number of public utility vehicle units that will serve each route.
“After the route rationalization, which is scheduled for 2025 to 2026, that’s when the obligation for them to modernize will come in,” Mr. Ortega said. “We can’t modernize them now because we’re not yet sure how many vehicles are actually needed on the routes.”
In August last year, Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. rejected a proposal to suspend the government’s jeepney modernization program, rejecting criticisms that the plan had been rushed.
Transportation Secretary Jaime J. Bautista earlier said suspending the modernization program would waste investments that have been made to roll out the plan.
Senate President Francis “Chiz” G. Escudero earlier sought to halt the program since operators are finding it difficult to buy expensive modern jeepneys that cost at least P2.6 million.
The deadline for jeepneys to consolidate into cooperatives lapsed on Dec. 31, 2023 but public utility vehicles were allowed to keep operating until a month later. The President later extended the deadline to April 30 last year.
The modernization program started in 2017, aiming to replace traditional jeepneys with units that have at least a Euro 4-compliant engine to cut pollution.
Meanwhile, Mr. Guadiz said his agency might release a memo requiring ride-hailing operators and owners to bear the 20% discount for persons with disabilities, senior citizens and students instead of passing these on to the drivers.
“Definitely, the driver should not be included in the equation. The driver should not need to shoulder any of the discounts,” he said at the same hearing.
Based on data from the LTFRB, ride-hailing services such as Grab Philippines absorb about 40% of the discount, while the operator shoulders 60%. — John Victor D. Ordoñez