ILOILO City – The transport holiday called by “first town” jeepneys yesterday was largely manageable, according to the Iloilo City Traffic Management Unit (ICTMU).
Most terminals reported normal operations despite the strike.
Uldarico Garbanzos, ICTMU head, described the situation at the Tagbak and Ungka transport terminals in Jaro district, as well as the Festive Hub terminal in Mandurriao district as “business as usual” during peak hours.
He attributed this to the continued operation of many jeepneys from “first towns” such as Leganes and Pavia.
However, the Mohon transport terminal in Arevalo district and the Oton, Iloilo area experienced some passenger stranding. Several jeepneys servicing the Oton-Iloilo City route participated in the transport holiday.
“Many passengers waited on the roadside. Others took the free rides offered by the local government unit of Oton to minimize the convenience caused by the strike,” Garbanzos said.
To transport these stranded passengers, several City Loop jeepneys were granted special permits by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Region 6 to extend their routes to Oton.
However, Garbanzos acknowledged the complaints from some Oton passengers about increased fares due to the need for multiple rides — from Oton to Mohon terminal, then from Mohon to Iloilo City.
One affected passenger, Maria Manzalay from Oton, who is an on-the-job trainee in Iloilo City, reported being late due to travel difficulties and high fare costs.
“Travel is difficult and expensive because vehicles are full,” Manzalay said, urging the Iloilo city government to better implement the enhanced Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP) to avoid affecting passengers from the first towns.
Mae, a cashier from Oton working in City Proper, also expressed frustration with the transport strike, finding it hard to get a jeepney to Mohon terminal.
“I waited a long time for a jeep. Even though I left home early, there were no Oton jeepneys as they joined the strike,” said Mae, who was forced to take a Miag-ao jeep from Oton to reach the Mohon terminal. Mae called on the city and provincial governments to resolve the issues with first towns jeepneys to prevent passenger inconvenience.
The first towns initiated the transport holiday to protest the city government’s LPTRP implementation, particularly the regulation allowing only 25 percent of jeepneys per route from first towns during peak hours, plus an additional 15 percent buffer. This arrangement is seen as detrimental and unfavorable to first towns jeepneys, as it reduces their income./PN
