ANTIQUE – The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has suspended for 90 days, effective immediately, the operation of 13 buses of Vallacar Transit, Inc. (VTI).
VTI is the operator of the Ceres bus that figured in a deadly ravine fall in Barangay Igbucagay, Hamtic town.
LTFRB-6 legal counsel and spokesperson, Atty. Salvador Altura, confirmed to Panay News that the suspended units with Franchise Case No. 11-VI-021-AK were plying the Iloilo to Caticlan-Aklan via San Jose and Pandan, Antique route.
The preventive suspension is only for the 13 buses on the said route, while the remaining units of the company may continue operations, Altura clarified.
Originally, the preventive suspension was only for 30 days. However, upon consultation with the LTFRB central office, it was decided to have it for 90 days to give the LTFRB-6 ample time to investigate.
Altura explained that one of the conditions of the preventive suspension is for the operator to produce convincing proof of the roadworthiness of the 13 bus units.
However, Altura is satisfied that even though the LTFRB-6 has not yet issued a statement regarding their preventive suspension, VTI’s management has already issued a press statement on Tuesday, Dec. 5, initiating the suspension of operations and ensuring to prove that the buses are roadworthy.
“VTI has reported the incident to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board immediately and is willing to cooperate with any investigations they will be conducting. In coordination with LTFRB Region 6, the management has decided to voluntarily suspend all operations of the 13 remaining units under the franchise involving Case No. 11-VI-021-AK pending investigation, wherein the bus involved in the incident had been a part of,” VTI stated in a press release.
Under the preventive suspension signed by LTFRB-6 director Richard Osmeña, the respondent-operator is further directed to comply with the following within the preventive suspension, to wit:
* Inspection and determination of the roadworthiness of all authorized units in Case No. 2011-VI-021-AK of the respondent-operator by the Motor Vehicle Inspection Service (MVIS) of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) together with the authorized representatives of the Board;
* Undergo a road safety seminar of the respondent-operator’s drivers and conductors to be conducted or scheduled by the Board and/or its authorized seminar provider;
* Compulsory drug testing of the respondent-operator’s drivers and conductors to be conducted by an authorized or accredited agency of the Department of Health and the LTO;
* Submit the Certificate of Registration and the latest LTO official receipt of the unit(s)
* Submit the video clippings of the roadworthiness inspection and road safety seminar; and
* Present closed-circuit television footage and a dash cam of the unit involved in the accident.
The respondent-operator is hereby directed to surrender the for-hire plates of the units to the legal division of this Board within five days from receipt of the order.
A show-cause order, which the bus operator should answer within 72 hours, was also issued.
VTI is asked to explain why their Certificate of Public Convenience should not be suspended, cancelled, and/or revoked for violation of the terms and conditions of their franchise.
“Subong [Dec. 6] nga aga, ang office nag-issue na sang show-cause order nga nagahatag sing 72 hours for Vallacar for show-cause why the franchise of the 13 units nga involved sa road accident will not be cancelled or suspended,” said Altura.
The bus operator is also ordered to appear together with the involved drivers of said PUB service at the hearing of the case on Dec. 13, 2023.
Failure on the part of the respondent-operator to appear and bring its drivers before this Board on the date mentioned above shall be considered a waiver on its part to be heard, and this case shall be decided based on the records of the Board.
At around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, the Ceres bus from Iloilo City carrying 28 passengers overshot the concrete barrier on the road dubbed as the “killer curve” in Barangay Igbucagay and plunged into a ravine. Seventeen were killed, including the driver, two inspectors and a conductor.
Four are recovering from minor injuries at the Angel Salazar Memorial General Hospital in San Jose de Buenavista, while seven are under treatment in hospitals in Iloilo City because of serious injuries./PN
