By Raymond Carl Dela Cruz | Philippine News Agency
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Wednesday reported a “significant” increase in applications for consolidation in public transportation.
In a statement, the DOTr attributed the increase in applications to a resolution from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) that allowed applicants to beat the deadline without payment of necessary fees.
However, it called on these applicants to settle these fees for them to be included in the final consolidation report.
“In the meantime that the figures are being finalized, all unconsolidated PUVs (public utility vehicles) may continue operating until Jan. 31, 2024. The LTFRB will issue an appropriate resolution to give effect to this instruction,” the DOTr said.
Under LTFRB Memorandum Circular (MC) 2023-051 signed on Dec. 14, 2023, all consolidated transport service entities and individual operators with filed applications for consolidation before the deadline are allowed to continue operating under their existing provisional authority (PA).
However, all PAs issued to individual operators that have not filed for consolidation are deemed “revoked” effective January 2024 and their previously authorized PUVs are now unregistered.
Last Dec. 29, LTFRB Technical Division chief Joel Bolano said more than 60 percent of PUVs have so far consolidated into cooperatives or corporations.
Bolano assured that a transport crisis will not happen in 2024 as special permits will be issued to allow PUVs to ply routes where there are no consolidated operators.
These special permits will be issued to consolidated operators in other routes that are capable of dispatching more PUVs, as well as unconsolidated operators but only until Jan. 31.