AS THE 15-day moratorium on the apprehension of traditional jeepneys plying at various thoroughfares of Bacolod City without franchises ends today, November 22, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez announced that it will be extended.
Benitez said this was agreed upon during his meeting with the representatives of the Land Transportation Office and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board over the weekend.
This will pave the way for a transfer plan [from the traditional to modernize jeepneys] and the concerns of the affected transport sector will be addressed, he said.
Among the requests of the operators of the traditional jeepneys is "sole proprietorship" in availing a modern jeepney unit instead of organizing a cooperative or corporation.
Aside from that, they were also appealing for a much cheaper version of the modern jeepney since the present price of a unit ranges between P1.3 to P2.4 million
“We are scheduled for another meeting today so we could iron out the resolution (of extending the moratorium),” Benitez said.
Diego Malacad, secretary general of the United Driver and Operators Center (Undoc), said drivers of traditional public utility jeepneys (PUJs) without permits and franchises stopped their operation yesterday, especially in the northern area of Bacolod to avoid penalties.
“We are not sure about the plans of LTO so to avoid penalties, some of our drivers decided not to ply their routes,” he added.
For his part, Albert Villanueva Sentrong Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Negros (SSTONE) lauded Benitez for his help in trying to resolve their concern.
He said that they wanted this issue to be resolved as soon as possible.
On November 7, 2022, several PUJ drivers, particularly those of traditional jeepneys, decided not to ply their routes following the operation of the LTO and LTFRB against them, especially those without franchises or with incomplete documents, in various areas in the city.
They resumed their operation the following day after the LTO-Western Visayas heeded to the request of Benitez for a reprieve on their operation against jeepneys without franchises or incomplete documents for 15 days. (with reports from MAP)