Starting Jan. 3, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) 7 will start apprehending drivers of public utility vehicles (PUV) who have not undergone training under the agency’s Driver’s Academy.
But Eduardo Montealto Jr., LTFRB 7 director, said that drivers who failed to undergo training at the Driver’s Academy will not be penalized immediately, but the LTFRB will initially warn them to undergo the training if they haven’t.
“We can only apprehend and warn the driver, but we cannot penalize them since we are still conducting ongoing training,” Montealto told SunStar Cebu on Monday, Dec. 31.
He said there are still around 30 percent of the region’s estimated 28,000 PUV drivers that have not undergone training since last year.
He said they can only accommodate a few drivers at the Driver’s Academy because of limited space.
Aside from limited space, the mandated one-day training for PUV drivers had to be extended for a day because the LTFRB must also give way to training traffic enforcers assigned at the Cebu City Traffic Office (CCTO), Montealto said.
He said the apprehensions will be conducted alongside the operations of the Inter-Agency Council for Traffic (I-ACT), which is composed of LTFRB, Land Transportation Office and PNP Highway Patrol Group.
But once the policy takes effect, operators whose drivers didn’t undergo training at the Driver’s Academy could pay a P5,000 penalty.
The LTFRB Central Office in Manila gave an ultimatum to PUV drivers to undergo training until Dec. 15.
It was, however, extended after the LTFRB said there are still some drivers from Central Visayas that have not yet undergone training.
Drivers who underwent the training will be taught various modules, including LTFRB policies, road safety, road rage and anger management; traffic signs and road pavements; and good grooming. (from SCG of SuperBalita Cebu / JKV)