Bacolod, 18 transport operators join service contracting program

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• CHERYL G. CRUZ

The Bacolod City government will enter into a Service Contract Agreement (SCA) with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and 18 qualified transport service operators in the highly-urbanized city.

The Sangguniang Panlungsod authorized Mayor Alfredo Benitez Dec. 4 to sign the SCAs with the LTFRB, and transport service entities (TSEs) operating the routes Fortune Towne, Granada, Airport Subdivision South Capitol Road Loop, Alijis-Central Market Loop, Banago-Libertad Loop, Bata-Libertad Loop, Eroreco-Central Market Loop, Handumanan-Libertad via Mansilingan Loop, Mansilingan-Central Market via City Heights Loop;

Northbound Terminal Libertad Loop, PHHC (Homesite)-Central Market Loop, San Dionisio-Central Market Loop, Shopping Libertad via La Salle Loop, Shopping-Libertad via San Agustin Loop, Shopping-Northbound Terminal Loop, Taculing Central Market Loop, and the Tangub-South Capital Road Loop.

The City Mayor’s Office submitted copies of the SCAs to the SP Dec. 4.

The LTFRB invited the City to participate in the Service Contracting Program (SCP), adding that “as a qualified LGU, (Bacolod’s) participation would not only assist in improving the quality and accessibility of public transportation but also help uplift the lives of the transport sector’s stakeholders”.

Benitez, in his letter to LTFRB 6 regional director Richard Osmena Nov. 28, said “this laudable endeavor being implemented by the national government…aims to enhance the level of service provided on routes by offering PUV (public utility vehicle) operators a performance-based payouts, through net service contract”.

Under the SCA, payouts shall be paid on a weekly basis, including Saturday and Sunday, based on the number of trips per week, at P20 per kilometer for traditional jeepneys, and P26/km. for modernized PUJs.

“Trip-cutting, fractional or uncompleted trips, shall not be considered as one trip, and shall not be paid. Should the TSEs fail to render the required percentage of deployment per day, the TSE shall not be qualified to the payout of that particular day,” the SCA said, adding that should a unit fail to render the required number of trips on a specific day based on the approved service plan, even when the TSE meets the required percentage of deployment for the day, the non-compliant unit shall be disqualified to the payout of that particular day”.

A performance-based incentive, equivalent to two percent, shall be paid on top of the computed weekly payout to the specific unit of TSEs that complies with 80 percent deployment of units per day, and the required daily number of trips (one-way) per unit within the weekly payout as per approved service plan, it added.

A GPS shall be installed in the PUJ to monitor compliance.

“The contract shall commence once the onboarding notice has been issued to the PUJ operator and shall remain effective until Dec. 31, 2023, or until all the funds allocated are fully disbursed, whichever comes earlier,” the SCA showed.

The Service Contracting Program is under Republic Act 11639, or the General Appropriations Act of 2022. It was initiated in response to the increased demand for public transport following the lifting of the national health emergency, the LTFRB said.

The program also aims to ensure that there are enough PUJs for commuters during a transport strike.

Under Memorandum Circular 2023-048, or the guidelines in the implementation of the SCP with qualified LGUs, P6.9 billion was transferred by the Department of Transportation to the LTFRB in March 2022, “to be used exclusively for the SCP, with P699 million allotted for implementation with identified LGUs as co-implementers”.

Several LGUs, mostly in the National Capital Region, have been implementing the program since last year. | CGC