ILOILO City – Councilor Plaridel Nava said he may propose a measure temporarily suspending the Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP) if the problems it spawned could not be resolved.
The city’s route plan is now on its third week of implementation.
According to Nava, he is in favor of the LPTRP. In fact, he was the one who previously pushed for it through an ordinance identifying the Megaworld as pilot transport hub.
However, for Nava, the route plan is not yet ripe for implementation, especially today that there are many things that should be considered.
“Tama ka-premature ang pag-implementar,” he said, citing some loopholes such as the lack public consultation and information dissemination.
Nava said among the first things he would do is to meet various stakeholders .
The LPTRP allows only city loop jeepneys to haul into the city all provincial passengers from transport terminals located in the city’s boundary barangays. It prohibits provincial jeepneys from entering the city.
The city government has six month of trial period. Within this period, the LPTRP will be tweaked to the satisfaction, hopefully, of the commuting public, said Mayor Jerry Treñas.
Treñas is not keen on cancelling the LPTRP outright. He assured the public “gina-refine ta ini…little by little.”
He stressed the importance of dialogue in looking for ways “nga ma-resolve ang mga issues.”
One of these issues is the doubling or even the tripling of fare of commuters from the provinces just to get to Iloilo City because provincial jeepneys from the so-called “first towns” are no longer allowed to enter the city.
The LPTRP is part of the national government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP) and must be implemented.
This flagship program of the Duterte administration envisions a restructured, modern, well-managed and environmentally sustainable transport sector where drivers and operators have stable, sufficient and dignified livelihood while commuters get to their destinations quickly, safely and comfortably.
Not merely a vehicle modernization program, the PUVMP also devolved the function of route planning to local government units (LGUs) as they are more versed in the terrain and passenger demand within their respective territorial jurisdiction.
LGUs are required under the program to submit their own LPTRP as a prerequisite for the opening of public utility vehicle (PUV) franchises within their jurisdiction./PN