BY GEROME DALIPE IV
ILOILO City – Applicants for Transport Network Vehicle Services (TNVS) are allowed to register a maximum of three units only.
Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Region 6 hearing officer Atty. Salvador Altura Jr. clarified this in response to allegations that Iloilo City’s Mayor Jerry Treñas owns a fleet of 200 units registered with the ride-hailing app Grab.
In an interview with Panay News, Altura cited Board Resolution No. 185-2022, which limits TNVS applicants to owning and operating no more than three units, directly contradicting claims of ownership of up to 200 units.
Altura stressed that this regulation aims to ensure fairness within the TNVS sector and prevent the rise of monopolies by restricting the number of units a single applicant can register.
“Ang concept sang Grab or other TNVS is to provide employment opportunities to all. Unlike taxis, we are limiting up to not more than three units per applicant,” said Altura.
Mayor Treñas himself yesterday denied owning about 200 car units registered with Grab.
“I have no units in Grab. If they can prove it, I will immediately resign my position,” said Treñas.
LTFRB’s Board Resolution No. 057 has introduced amendments to the previous memorandum circular accepting new applications for TVNS in the Visayas and Mindanao.
The Board approved about 1, 650 TNVS slots to ply in the cities of Iloilo and Bacolod and the rest of Region 6.
In 2023, the LTFRB granted 1,100 slots for the application of TNVS in Iloilo City. Of the number, about 900 units are operational.
In the board resolution, the LTFRB opened 1,600 TNVS slots this year and another 50 slots near this year in Western Visayas.
The Board also adopted the same guidelines and documentary requirements for the filing of TNVS applications.
The Board allowed each Transportation Network Corporation (TNC) to register one hundred slots per day, which must be paid and filed within two days from the issuance of the assessment.
So far, the LTFRB-6 has accredited around 2,000 partner drivers from various Transport Network Vehicle Services across the region.
Altura underscored that accreditation is part of efforts to regulate and manage TNVS operations, ensuring that drivers comply with government regulations, such as the limitation of three units per applicant, as outlined in Board Resolution No. 185-2022.
The issuance of the board resolution was to “respond to the needs of modern commuters and address the large demand for transport services in expeditious and responsive ways” in the Visayas and Mindanao. LTFRB reportedly used a data-driven taxi availability index (TAI) considering the island‘s population and tourist data./PN
