'Follow bus coding before complaining'

MANILA, Philippines –  Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco urged Metro Manila bus operators to follow the number coding program of the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) first before criticizing it.

Tiangco, who chairs the House committee on Metro Manila development, said the plan of some bus owners to go on strike tomorrow, when the MMDA enforces the scheme, has no basis.

The operators should welcome and follow the scheme as this would result in less traffic congestion in the metropolis. This would also benefit these operators since it would translate into a shorter turnaround time for their buses, he said.

He said MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino should go ahead with the number coding scheme and not be cowed by some bus owners’ threat to stage a strike because the government is not helpless.

Tiangco also denounced what he described as the illegal practices of many bus operators.

“They resort to fielding not only colorum buses, but ‘kabit’ and ‘buntis’ units. All these are illegal and are basis for the cancellation of their franchises,” he said.

Tiangco said colorum and “kabit” buses are almost the same since they are not covered by an operator’s franchise.

He said the term “buntis” (pregnant) in the bus industry means units using the license plates of franchised buses.

“In other words, some operators field two or more buses using only one license plate,” he added.

He urged the MMDA, the Land Transportation Office and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to stop these illegal practices.

“All they have to do is to weed out the illegal units by checking their registration records and franchises, by rejecting bribe offers and punishing those doing these unlawful practices,” he said.

In a recent hearing conducted by the Tiangco committee, LTFRB officials said there are only 5,332 franchised buses in Metro Manila.

They said the number is not increasing since there is a moratorium on the grant of new franchises.

Tiangco, a former mayor of Navotas, expressed surprise at the number, saying recent studies have revealed that 6,000 buses are plying EDSA alone.

“EDSA is good for only 3,000 buses, but we have double that number, most of them illegal units,” he said.

He lamented that bus operators seem to resort to any unlawful activity along the road just to fatten their bank accounts.

MMDA, cops ready for bus ‘coding’

The MMDA and the Philippine National Police said yesterday they are ready for any contingency that may arise with the implementation of the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Plan (UVVRP), better known as the “number coding” program for buses.

Starting tomorrow, the MMDA will implement the UVVRP for buses on an experimental basis for two months as part of a comprehensive program to ease traffic on EDSA and along the metropolis’ major roads.

Tolentino warned bus firms that they face arrest should they push through with their plan to defy the UVVRP tomorrow.

“Should they try to resist, we will detain their drivers and conductors and hold their buses until 7 p.m.,” said Tolentino.

Tolentino met yesterday with National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) commander Chief Superintendent Nicanor Bartolome and Highway Patrol Group (HPG) head Chief Superintendent Leonardo Espina to coordinate their actions.

Espina said the HPG will deploy, starting today, motorcycle teams to assist the NCRPO in traffic management and control along EDSA. The HPG, he added, will also assist the MMDA in apprehending drivers of colorum buses and bus drivers who will defy the UVVRP.

Espina added that regional HPG commanders in Central Luzon and in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) will also advise bus operators in their respective areas on the effectivity of the UVVRP.

Tolentino also placed all of the MMDA’s tow trucks on standby for possible deployment should defiant bus drivers decide to abandon their vehicles on the road. The MMDA will also rent private tow trucks.

According to the MMDA, should buses be abandoned along EDSA or along the major roads during the enforcement of the UVVRP, these will be immediately towed to the MMDA impounding area at White Plains Avenue in Quezon City.

To ensure the smooth implementation of the UVVRP for buses, the MMDA will deploy 1,800 traffic enforcers.

“It’s all systems go (tomorrow). We will be issuing traffic violation tickets to offenders, as we have informed the bus operators of the re-implementation of the scheme beforehand and they all agreed so there will be no excuse and nobody will be spared,” Tolentino said.

According to the MMDA, around 13,000 provincial and city buses are covered by the scheme. More than 1,000 of these vehicles will be affected by the UVVRP daily.

MMDA records show there are 3,732 buses plying Metro Manila routes and 3,088 provincial buses that pass through EDSA.

Unlike for private vehicles, there are no “window hours” between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. for buses during their respective number coding days.