THE Service Contracting Program (SCP) in Davao Region of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) ends with more than six million ridership.
The last day of the third phase of SCP was on June 30, 2022, recording a total of 6,154,124 ridership from traditional utility van express (TUVE), public utility bus (PUB), traditional public utility jeepney (TPUJ), and other transport units contracted under the program since it started.
This means that SCP’s two services, namely the Net Contracting service and Gross Contracting service, are finished, as well as the Libreng Sakay for the commuting public.
The duration of the SCP is usually determined by how long the allocated budget will last, which in this phase, was P279 million.
“This is a big increase from the previous phases and we are fortunate that this time we have included other denominations like vans, tourist transports, and jeepneys,” said LTFRB-Davao Regional Director Nonito Llanos III.
Phase 3 of the SCP in Davao Region began in April of this year under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2022.
Transport operators employed under Net Contracting are given a subsidy or ayuda worth P28 for every kilometer run, applicable for public utility jeepneys and vans. While under Gross Contracting, buses are set to receive P84 and P54 for vans for every kilometer run.
“We believe that the program has greatly helped our (transport) cooperatives and corporations to recover from the pandemic and mitigate the effects of fuel price increases,” Llanos said.
Despite the SCP ending, LTFRB-Davao is releasing another batch of fuel subsidies worth P6,500 covered by the budget under GAA of 2022, beginning June 25.
The beneficiaries covered are more than 700 units of TPUJ, 800 PUB, 628 TUVE, 5,000 taxis, and 149 tourist transport vehicles. ICM