The Department of Transportation (DOTr) will push through with the nationwide Public Transport Modernization Program (PTMP) as majority of the transport sector have signed up under the program.
Transportation undersecretary for Road Transport and Infrastructure, Jesus Ferdinand Ortega, said Aug. 1 that the agency will enforce the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to proceed with the PTMP after the deadline for consolidation lapsed April 30.
“On the part of the DOTr, we were given a marching order po ng Pangulo, 100 percent go po ito,” Ortega stressed in a radio interview Wednesday.
He pointed out that the issue of modernization is focused on commuter-safety and comfort.
Under the PTMP, jeepney units that are 15 years old will be replaced with Euro 4 engines, or electrically-powered engines with solar panel roofing.
“This goes beyond the drivers, the operators. This is about the commuters,” Ortega said. “We’re talking of millions of commuters every day. This is a project na dekada na pong hinihintay ng mga mamamayan.”
Under the PTMP, the road transportation system in the country will be transformed by addressing vehicle safety and quality, route network efficiency, and fleet management, while providing commuters a modern public utility vehicle that is comfortable, accessible, safe and affordable.
Leaders of the country’s largest coalition of transport groups also expressed support to the transport modernization program, the DOTr said in a press release.
The coalition consists of Pasang Masda, Alliance of Transport Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, Alliance of Concerned Transport Organizations, Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, Stop and Go Transport Coalition, and Liga ng Transportasyon at Operators sa Pilipinas, as well as the UV Express National Alliance of the Philippines.
The group argued that their workers have received benefits, including regular and incentive pay, social security, Pag-IBIG, and HMO (Health Maintenance Organization) coverage, with the help of the PTMP.
Almost all senators filed a resolution July 30 seeking to temporarily suspend the implementation of the PTMP.
Senate Resolution (SR) 1096, authored by Senate President Francis Escudero, majority leader Francis Tolentino, minority leader Koko Pimentel, pro tempore Jinggoy Estrada, and senators Raffy Tulfo, Nancy Binay, Alan Peter Cayetano, Pia Cayetano, Ronald Dela Rosa, Loren Legarda, Imee Marcos, Robinhood Padilla, Grace Poe, Bong Revilla, Joel Villanueva, Cynthia Villar, Mark Villar, and Migz Zubiri, states the “urgent need to thoroughly review and reassess the impact of the program, to alleviate the fears of the drivers and transport operators, who will be directly burdened by its implementation.”
SR 1096 highlighted the valid and urgent concerns raised by affected drivers, groups, unions, and transport cooperatives, particularly issues on consolidation into cooperatives, a Senate press release said. ||
