DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 15 January) – Public utility jeepneys in this city will not be affected by the ongoing efforts to consolidate jeepney drivers and operators under the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP), which the government is implementing in the hopes of modernizing public transportation in the country, an official of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB)-Davao said.
Lawyer Ernest Benz Davila, LTRFB-Davao chief transportation development officer, told the Kapihan sa Philippine Information Agency on Friday that the city is covered by the Davao City Public Transport Modernization Project, a separate program which will replace its ageing jeepneys with buses.
Davila said the provisional authority granted to PUJs in Davao City will remain valid until the deployment of buses under the city’s public transport modernization project, also known as the High Priority Bus System (HPBS), while the PUVMP is a program for other areas in the region.
The P73.4 billion-HPBS will be funded by a loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and from the national and local budgets.
Last July 1, the Philippine government signed a $1 billion (P54.89 billion) loan agreement with the ADB for the HPBS.
The national government targets to commence “the initial operation for the city’s bus modernization project by the end quarter of 2024, and full operations by the end of 2025.”
Once operational, the HPBS will have 29 bus routes divided into the following four tiers: MetroDavao (will form the core services that connect all major commercial centers along five routes), DavaoInter (will run along with eight routes connecting the inner urban areas directly to the Davao Central Business District), DavaoFeeder (will run along nine routes linking smaller centers and areas of more dispersed populations to the MetroDavao services), and DavaoLocal (will provide a link between the outer rural areas of the city and main transport system or the integrated terminals).
In a press release dated June 29, the ADB said that the project would “deploy electric bus fleets at scale in support of the Philippines’ efforts to reduce greenhouse gases and promote climate action.”
It said the loan would “support the procurement of a modern fleet of about 1,100 electric and Euro 5-standard diesel-fueled buses with operations managed by the private sector under performance-based contracts.”
The ADB said the new fleet is expected to reduce 60% of annual greenhouse gas emissions from public transport in Davao City, the country’s third-largest city in terms of population.
It said the HPBS would service about 800,000 passengers per day.
According to the ADB, the project would include the “construction of around 1,000 bus stops with bright lighting and shelters, five bus depots and three bus terminals, and provide bus driving training for the new system.”
“The project will upgrade the city’s public transport experience via an intelligent transport system that includes a bus location system, automatic fare collection systems, and Wi-Fi connectivity in buses, terminals, and depots,” it added.
Engr. Ronnel Victor Panigon, PUVMP head of the LTFRB-Davao, said the agency recorded a total of 610 PUJs and 536 units of UV Express vans that have been consolidated in the region, while there are 127 PUJ units and 64 UV Express vans that remain unconsolidated.
In Board Resolution 002 released by LTFRB last January 8, the authority to operate given to affected unconsolidated individual operators has been extended until January 31, 2024.
According to LTFRB, the PUVMP is the “government’s response to address both the aggravating transport related problems and the future transportation demand of the country.”
Under this program, Davila said that “individual franchises will be cancelled and revoked and will be put under the name of a juridical entity which will either be a cooperative or a corporation.”
Panigon added that the government, through the Land Bank of the Philippines, will offer loan programs to help these entities procure modern public carriers. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)