By Arjay L. Balinbin

JEEPNEY prototypes were presented outside the Senate on Monday, Dec. 11., on the occasion of its inquiry into the jeepney modernization program, with one group questioning the features of those models.

“Hindi compliant. Walang para sa PWD (Not compliant. There is nothing for Persons with Disabilities),” Lalaine M. Guanzon of the PWD Federation told Senator Grace Poe, chairperson of the Senate committee on public services, during its public hearing on the program, after checking the prototypes parked outside the Senate building.

Ms. Guanzon also said her group had earlier done some ocular visits at some manufacturing companies and concluded that modern jeepneys are not PWD-friendly.

Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade, for his part, acknowledged that “there are indeed prototypes presented to the department that do not comply with the requirements,” one of which is to “provide comfort or convenience to persons with disabilities.”

Mr. Tugade assured that he does “not approve” prototypes that do not comply with the basic requirements stipulated in the “omnibus franchising guidelines,” and adding that he “advises manufacturers to modify the design of the model” for them to get an approval.

The Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) requirements under the omnibus franchising guidelines indicate four major features for modern jeepneys, such as their being environmentally friendly, their safety and security components, and their comfort and convenience.

For a vehicle to be environmentally friendly, it has to comply with the Clean Air Act, Euro 4 emission standards and safety standards, and uses electricity, solar, or an alternative source of energy. For safety, the unit must have side doors, speed limiters, and an automatic braking system.

For security purposes, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) requires units to have CCTV, GPS, and dashboard camera. Meanwhile, for commuter comfort and convenience, units must have Automatic Fare Collection System (AFCS), free Wi-Fi, and must be PWD and elderly-friendly.

Major transport groups such as the Alliance of Concerned Transport Organization (ACTO), Confederation of Drivers and Operators in Central Luzon, and National Federation of Transport Cooperative have expressed their opposition to these requirements.

“We are not against modernization. The problem is that the omnibus guidelines (were) not made clear to the transport groups. We were not given a chance to speak at public hearings. They should have heard our side,” said ACTO chairman Efren de Luna.

For his part, Philippine Confederation of Drivers and Operators in Central Luzon (PCDO) chairman Dan Yumul said, “They should have included us in formulating the guidelines.”

Mr. Tugade insisted that the agency “had invited them to participate in the public consultations.”

For her part, Ms. Poe said “the government indeed has plans for modernization — ambitious, yes, impossible, no. However, we cannot deny that despite efforts at dialogue, there is opposition because of the following: the fact that the new routes have not been identified, the high unit cost and burdensome financing terms, the requirement of consolidation into transport cooperatives — all these big details that need to be ironed out before we require our driver-operators to scrap their old units in favor of new ones.”

In the DoTr’s overall implementation timeline, there is an ongoing full implementation of the route rationalization study within Metro Manila which will last until 2018. In Davao, the route rationalization study has been fully implemented this year, while Cebu is still in the pilot stage.

Of the financing terms which most transport groups question, the government commits to initially pay the 5% subsidy, while the remaining amount shall be paid within a seven-year period at 6% rate per annum.

For drivers or operators to be eligible to participate in the program, the omnibus franchising guidelines require them to form a cooperative.

“Part of the components that will work well, dapat may (there should be) industry consolidation. Ito yung maliliit na operators na magkaisa (This is for small operators to unite). It’s an option. They can create their own corporation to get a franchise,” said Martin B. Delgra III, chairman of the Land Transportation Franchising & Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

Ms. Poe said resistance to the modernization program is understandable, citing the same opposition to when the LRT, FX, and UV express first came out.

The DoTr has committed to a three-year transition period towards full modernization, where there will be pilot areas and implementation will be according to phases, and that old jeepneys will not be phased out right away given that the program’s budget is only P2.2 billion and that only 28,000 units will be covered by the subsidy program next year.

Ms. Poe also noted the DoTr’s commitment to extend the LTFRB franchise of jeepneys from five to seven years, and to ensure monitoring of new units, whether they are in compliance with the requirements using the Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS), and regular consultations by the DoTr secretary during the program’s implementation.

Mr. Tugade told the hearing he is “still open to discussions” and that he “will meet” the transport groups “every two months.”

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