ILOILO City – This city’s intensified crackdown on unauthorized tricycles has netted more than 160 violators in just over a week, but enforcement officers say a mix of repeat offenders and widespread ignorance of the rules is undermining efforts to clear major roads.
From June 29 to the present, 161 tricycle and e-trike drivers have been apprehended under the city’s renewed implementation of the Tricycle Route Plan (TRP), according to Uldarico Garbanzos, head of the Transport and Traffic Management Office (TTMO).
The operations target colorum tricycles and units operating without the necessary Motorized Tricycle Operator’s Permits (MTOPs) or other documents.
“Since last week, our teams have been going around daily,” said Garbanzos. “We have dual operations: clearing of roads and apprehending tricycles without franchises or permits.”
Of the 161 apprehended, 132 have already settled their violations. Others remain unresolved due to unlicensed drivers or lack of registration documents. Some electric tricycles remain unclaimed.
What concerns TTMO most, however, is the persistence of violators despite being caught.
“There was one case where we caught a driver on Thursday (last week), and then again on Friday,” Garbanzos said. “That shows they’re still going back to the same routes. But this will not slow us down — we will continue with the operations.”
He added that many of those apprehended claimed they were unaware of the ongoing campaign.
“Most say they didn’t know about the implementation,” he explained. “Maybe they’re not on social media, or they don’t listen to mainstream media. Many of them have gotten used to not being apprehended before.”
In response, TTMO has launched a grassroots campaign to raise awareness. Officers have been attending barangay assemblies to explain the TRP and enlist the help of barangay officials to spread the message.
“Just last weekend, we went to four barangays to directly communicate our campaign,” Garbanzos said.
The Tricycle Route Plan is part of the city’s broader initiative to regulate traffic, ensure public safety, and remove slow-moving vehicles from national highways and major thoroughfares where they are prohibited. Drivers caught violating the TRP are now required to sign an undertaking that they will no longer ply restricted routes unless fully compliant with city regulations./PN
