'Transport break' slightly affects commuters in Iloilo City

ILOILO CITY – The two-hour "transport break" joined by over 400 modernized buses in Iloilo City slightly impacted this city while over 1,000 consolidated traditional jeepneys continued to ply their routes.

Traffic Management Unit head Uldarico Garbanzos said there was coordination about the nationwide unity caravan amid the resolution suspending the implementation of the Public Transport Modernization Program (PTMP).

"We prepared for it," Garbanzos said.

Raymundo Parcon, president of the Western Visayas Transport Cooperative, said the break was done during two "dead hours" and they resumed afterwards.

"We would like to manifest to our national group. We would like to present to the government to give leeway to legal cooperatives because we are the ones supporting the program of the government," he said in a separate interview.

Instead of suspending the PTMP, he said the government should instead address the issues involved.

The Western Visayas Alliance of Transport Cooperatives and Corporations, Inc., in a resolution passed last week, called for a "fair and just treatment" of the situation and for the city's Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP) to be exempted from suspension.

Iloilo City is the first highly urbanized city in the Philippines to implement an enhanced LPTRP, covering 25 routes composed of 17 rationalized and eight developmental routes.

The coops said they directly invested over P1.7 billion for the modern jeepneys, employing 3,405 workers.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Cebu Transport Cooperatives (FCTC) held a lightning rally on Monday to express its continued call to the national government to strengthen the modernization program.

Hundreds of members of the FCTC gathered at the Fuente Osmeña Rotunda and marched toward the regional office of LTFRB, demanding the national government not to suspend the implementation of the PTMP.

"We are here to voice out our opposition to the Senate resolution suspending the public transport modernization program," FCTC chair Ellen Maghanoy said.

Around 1,500 units of modern jeeps involving 11,000 workers will be affected should Malacañang heed the proposal of the Senate to suspend the implementation of the program, she added.

Maghanoy said they would conduct more rallies to show their vehement objection to derail the modernization. (PNA)