No intention to 'antagonize' Angkas, DoTr says

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation on Saturday said it does not intend to “antagonize” app-based motorcycle taxi service Angkas, amid calls to lift the ban on two-wheel vehicles for public transportation.

The House of Representatives last January 30 approved on second reading House Bill 8959 or the “Motorcycles-for-Hire Act” that seeks to allow and regulate the use of motorcycles as public utility vehicles.

The move came amid public clamor for the use of motorcycles as public transport to avoid Metro Manila’s infamous traffic gridlock. Motorcycles-for-hire are also commonly used in areas in the provinces that jeepney and bus routes do not serve and where roads may be too rough for four-wheeled vehicles.

Acting on a petition filed by the DOTr and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, the Supreme Court last year issued a temporary restraining order stopping the operations of Angkas.

RELATED: DOTr asked: Allow Angkas to operate as TNC

TWG working on proposal

In a statement, the DOTr said it seeks public understanding as its technical working group “threshes out the numerous concerns involved in the proposal, foremost of which is commuter safety.”

“The DOTr also wishes to reiterate that it does not intend to antagonize Angkas,” the department said.

“In fact, the DOTr has welcomed motorcycle groups in TWG discussions to thresh out the requirements and other contingent issues. These issues are ultimately directed at regulation for passenger safety and nothing else,” it added.

Last month, House lawmakers adopted a resolution directing the DOTr to implement a nationwide pilot run on the use of motorcycle taxis like Angkas despite a freeze order issued by the SC.

In the upper chamber, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto filed Senate Bill 2173 that aims to classify public utility motorcycles as those with engines of at least 125 cc and can travel faster than 50 kilometers per hour.

Recto said the bill was filed as a response to the call of the SC and the DOTr that the Land Transportation and Traffic Code must be amended first before motorcycle ride-sharing services can be legally accredited.

In the same statement, the DOTr stressed that issuing a department order allowing motorcycle taxis to operate as public transport would expose transport officials to “criminal liability or contempt,” saying such a move would go against the TRO issued by the high court.

“This is why the DOTr has maintained that the best recourse for conversion of motorcycle taxis to public transport is amendment of the law,” it said.

“In fact, this lack of an enabling law is best reiterated by the various proposed bills in the House and the Senate seeking to allow motorcycle taxis to operate as a public transport mode,” it added.

Angkas has 25,000 accredited drivers.