Dec. 31 deadline of PUV consolidation stays —DOTr

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is standing firm on implementing the December 31 deadline for individual public utility vehicle (PUV) operators to consolidate.

In a statement, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said: “The PUV consolidation deadline stays.”

“This initiative has gained the support of majority of our PUV operators as around 70% of them have already taken part in the consolidation process,” Bautista added.

The Transportation chief made the statement on the heels of a petition filed by Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) and affiliate groups before the Supreme Court asking for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) of the December 31 deadline for PUV consolidation under the government’s modernization program for public transport.

The group claimed that based on PISTON’s records, at least 15 major routes in Metro Manila have no consolidated units under one transport service entity or cooperative with three days to go before the December 31 deadline.

The PUV Modernization Program requires existing franchise holders to consolidate under a transport service entity (TSE) or cooperative, since the franchise will be issued to the said entity, not individual franchise holders.

Bautista, however, insisted that the PUV Modernization will remain as “the agency pushes for the massive modernization of the land transport sector.”

He said the DOTr will make sure that the PUV modernization will be aligned with the goal of easing the plight of commuters by ensuring cleaner and safer means of public transportation for the riding public. 

Despite the strict deadline, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) gave a month leeway for individual operators to operate in routes without consolidated transport service entity.—AOL, GMA Integrated News