BACOLOD City – In Western Visayas, this city recorded the lowest number of public utility jeepneys (PUJ) that have consolidated as part of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP), according to the Bacolod Alliance for Commuters, Operators and Drivers, Inc. (BACOD).
Rudy Catedral, BACOD president, claimed that only 23 percent of PUJ operators in the city have decided to consolidate.
BACOD, he said, also remains firm on their decision not to consolidate for the PUV modernization.
Catedral, however, explained that they do not oppose the PUVMP, adding that some operators may choose to rehabilitate their vehicles according to the goals of the program without the need to join a cooperative.
Previously, BACOD protested at the Land Transportation Office (LTO) after some of their members received word that they will be apprehended following the expiry of the provisional authority for traditional PUJs on Dec. 31, 2023.
However, the LTO Region 6 clarified on Jan. 5 that they have not received orders from the central office to begin apprehending traditional PUJs that have not consolidated.
Bacolod City mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez later assured Catedral that their group can continue operating.
The city mayor also sent a letter to Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board – Region 6 requesting them to allow traditional PUJs to continue their operations and not to apprehend them. (Watchmen Daily Journal)/PN
