LTFRB’s plan to restore public bus routes to full capacity lauded

MANILA – The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has committed to restore all public bus routes to full capacity without Covid-19 restrictions, a leader of the House of Representatives said on Tuesday.

House Ways and Means Committee chair Joey Salceda said there are no longer any restrictions on public utility bus routes to help mitigate the effects of oil prices on transport costs to Filipino workers and consumers.

“The LTFRB made the announcement during the (House Ad Hoc Committee on the Fuel Crisis) hearing that buses should be able to ply the routes they ply, without the Covid restrictions. We are thankful for that, as we requested it of the government last week,” Salceda said in a statement.

He said he has also urged the LTFRB to allow public utility jeepneys to ply their full routes.

“It’s essential that we provide adequate public transport options, because private transport is an extremely inefficient use of expensive fuel. Some workers are just forced to ride their own cars due to restrictions on public transport, which no longer make sense given titanic election rallies and other mass gathering events already allowed,” Salceda said.

Salceda, meanwhile, proposed a subsidy program funded by excess value-added tax (VAT) revenues due to rising oil prices.

Dubbed the “Katas ng TRAIN (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law)” program, Salceda proposed the PHP68.8 billion subsidy program to be composed of the following: monthly lifeline rate and middle class power subsidies worth PHP29.3 billion; fertilizer subsidies for farmers with farms under three hectares, for PHP20 billion; relief programs for Typhoon Odette victims, for PHP8 billion, to complete President Duterte’s PHP1 billion pledge; social pension increases worth PHP3.3 billion; fuel subsidies for small fisherfolk, worth PHP3.2 billion; authorizing the Pantawid Pasada Program for drivers, under the 2022 budget’s unprogrammed funds, for PHP5 billion, including subsidies for tricycle operators and drivers.

“We may realize some PHP75.2 billion in incremental VAT subsidies if prices continue to rise. We could use that to fund the Katas ng TRAIN programs," he said.

In response to comments from the LTFRB that tricycle subsidies should be covered by local governments, Salceda cited provisions of the national budget which point to tricycles being included in the coverage of the Pantawid Pasada Program.

“There is no excuse for excluding tricycles in the Pantawid Pasada program. That is in the budget, and the budget is a law. There is executive discretion, and if implementing the program mandated by the budget is difficult, the executive should find a way to implement the program,” he said.

Salceda said it is estimated that there are as many as four million tricycle drivers in the country, a demographic that "should not be excluded from assistance." (PNA)