The Department of Transportations on Monday declared the operations of public utility vehicles as normal across the country, except for a handful of routes in Metro Manila given the ongoing transport group strike.
“Based on our monitoring this morning, only two routes – Monumento to Malanday and Monumento to Navotas – were paralyzed. But for the others, the traffic situation is normal and there’s sufficient transportation supply,” undersecretary for road transport and infrastructure, Mark Steven Pastor, told reporters.
“Alam po nila [PUV drivers] kung ano ang tama at ang tama ay magbigay ng serbisyo sa ating mga kababayan, he added.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said the agency is not worried about the impact of the transportation strike because most of the PUV drivers did not participate.
“Nakita namin na hindi gaano kalaki ang impact dahil ang report sa amin sa Region 9, 10, 11 and 12 walang sumali. Dito sa Metro Manila kaunti lang, pero sa Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna ay normal ang operations,” he added.
The leader of the Manibela transport group, Mar Valbuena, previously said more than 100,000 jeepney and UV Express drivers in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol Region, and Cagayan De Oro were to participate in protest of the government’s PUV Modernization Program.
The striking drivers and operators resist the program that encourages their ranks to group themselves into transport cooperatives or form transport corporations to boost their chances of obtaining bank funds when the mandate to modernize compels them to borrow money for the purchase of modern jeepneys or buses.
