THE Memorandum Circular (MC) of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) mentioned that the Regional Office of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) conducted an actual survey on the required number of taxi units in Baguio City/La Trinidad, Benguet. The Board came up with a total of two hundred (200) additional units opened for franchising in the said areas as stated under MC Number 2019-016.
LTFRB emphasized that the additional number of taxi units is a result of the increase in population, growth of the tourism industry and rapid economic growth. The cancellation, expiration and abandonment of Certificate of Public Convenience (CPC) have also contributed to the shortage and decrease in the number of taxi units in Cordillera.
To respond to the foregoing concerns, LTFRB saw the need to fill in the gap between the existing number of taxi units and the actual demand.
The circular is a support to the Omnibus Guidelines on the Planning and Identification of Public Road Transportation Services and Franchise Issuance in relation to the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).
Some of the guidelines in processing the applications include that the minimum number of units per application is 50. Only brand new units shall be accepted for the processing, which shall be compliant with the provisions of Department Order No. 2017-11 or the Omnibus Franchising Guidelines. The applicant shall have a garage sufficient to house the number of units being applied for.
Another guideline is for the applicant to submit all the legal, technical and financial capability qualification documents. A highlight of the requirement is the presence of documents to prove that the applicant has available financial resources equivalent to or exceeding the amount of P800,000. This means that the applicant should have at least forty million available financial sources in order to qualify for the program.
Cooperatives who are engaged in transport services are encouraged to apply for the opened number of franchises. Co-ops are required to submit certified true copies of Registration with the Cooperative Development Authority, Articles and By-Laws, Office of the Transport Cooperative Accreditation and latest Annual Performance Report.
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The Local Government Unit of La Trinidad will be conducting a Mandatory Training for Sangguniang Kabataan officials of the municipality on April 29-30 at the Municipal Lednicky Hall. This aims to orient and capacitate the SK Officials on the basics of local governance and local government operations. The second part of the activity will be the initial planning and budgeting of SK Funds.