A transport cooperative has launched 30 units of modern public utility jeepneys (MPUJs) and 15 Tourist Transport Services (TTS) that will ply four routes in Cebu City.

Members of the Federation of Cebu Transport Cooperatives (FCTC) and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Central Visayas Director Eduardo Montealto Jr. led the launching ceremony Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023, at Our Lady of Consolacion Parish in Barangay San Roque, Talisay City.

The new MPUJs will be operated by El Pardo Transport Cooperative with 14 units, Lahug Apas Transport Cooperative with one unit, Inayawan Transport Services Cooperative with five units, and Pit-os Talamban Mandaue Transport Cooperative with 10 units.

Meanwhile, the Lapu-Lapu Mandaue Drivers Operators Multipurpose Cooperative has also launched 15 units of TTS. A TTS has a capacity of 14 passengers and is exclusive only for the use of transporting tourists.

Montealto told SunStar Cebu that the FCTC is the first-ever federation of cooperatives in Central Visayas with six member cooperatives.

In Cebu alone, there are 52 transport cooperatives but as of the moment, six cooperatives have been federated and Montealto said the others will soon join the FCTC or may form their own federation.

Montealto added that the FCTC has more than 350 MPUJs being operated by its member cooperatives in different routes in Cebu City.

With the addition of the 30 new units, a total of 1,214 MPUJs are already plying the roads of the entire Central Visayas.

Montealto said the majority of the MPUJs are plying Cebu City with 744 units, while the rest are in the towns of Cebu and Negros Oriental Cebu.

It can also be expected that around 600 new MPUJs will be delivered in Cebu within this year, he added.

Each MPUJ can accommodate up to 30 passengers and has a price of around P2 million depending on the brand.

According to Montealto, loans are being provided by different banks to the cooperatives for the acquisition of the MPUJs.