BACOLOD City — The city government has intensified its campaign against colorum tricycles as the Bacolod Traffic and Transport Management Department (BTTMD) continues to enforce local traffic and transport ordinances aimed at improving road safety and regulating public transportation operations.
Data from the BTTMD showed that from April 1 to 30, 2026, a total of 49 colorum tricycles were apprehended and impounded as part of the city’s ongoing anti-illegal transport operations.
Of the total number apprehended, 27 units were found operating without permits or franchises, while 22 drivers were caught without valid licenses.
BTTMD head Atty. Reuben Mikhail Sabig said the agency continues to conduct regular clearing and enforcement operations in major areas of the city, including Libertad and the vicinity of Ayala Malls Capitol Central, where several illegal tricycles were recently apprehended and brought to the agency’s impounding area in Barangay Alijis.
He added that the city is also expediting the completion of a new and larger impounding facility at the Bacolod reclamation area to accommodate the increasing number of apprehended vehicles.
Sabig admitted that current enforcement operations remain challenging, especially in congested areas such as downtown Bacolod and Lacson Street, where traffic personnel still have to transport impounded units to Alijis.
Despite the crackdown, Sabig acknowledged that poverty remains one of the primary reasons many drivers continue to operate illegally.
“Most of the drivers we apprehend say they are only trying to earn a living,” he said.
According to the BTTMD, an estimated 40 percent of tricycles currently operating in Bacolod are considered colorum or unregistered.
The intensified enforcement is anchored on City Ordinance No. 818, which regulates tricycle operations and other forms of public transportation within the city.
Sabig said the campaign is necessary not only to restore order on major roads but also to ensure commuter safety and protect legitimate transport operators who comply with franchise and licensing requirements.
Earlier, Councilor Dindo Ramos, chairperson of the city council’s committee on transportation, said unfranchised tricycles pose risks to passengers and motorists because they are not covered by compulsory insurance and other regulatory safeguards that protect the public in cases of accidents, injuries, or property damage.
He also emphasized that illegal transport operations deprive the city government of revenues from franchise fees and other lawful charges.
“The city has the duty to protect legitimate tricycle operators and drivers who have complied with franchising requirements and paid the necessary fees and charges,” Ramos said.
Meanwhile, the city government is also monitoring the growing number of electric bikes and similar alternative transport vehicles operating on major roads without proper regulation, as officials push for stricter compliance with local traffic policies./PN
