LTFRB gives old school buses 10-month reprieve

MORE TIME Transport operators roll out a protest caravan May 7 in Quezon City to seek a delay in the enforcement of the age limit on vehicles used as school shuttles. LYN RILLON

Aging school service vehicles supposedly due for phaseout this year will still allowed to operate until March 31, 2016—but there’s a catch.

Operators seeking confirmation of their franchise must submit an affidavit stating that they will replace units that are over the 15-year age limit imposed by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

The replacement must be done before school year 2016-2017, the board’s chief said on Friday.

In a press briefing, LTFRB Chair Winston Ginez said “this is not a question of blinking [or bowing to earlier protests] but a question of balancing the interests of parents, students and transport service operators.”

“We will now bind the operators to their word that they are agreeable [to the phaseout] if they are given an extension period,” he added.

Earlier this month, transport groups asked the LTFRB to defer the implementation of a October 2013 memo stating that school buses exceeding the age limit would be phased out starting Jan. 1 this year.

But Ginez conceded that “there is a need to assure the availability of school service for this school year,” which starts for public schools next week. He noted that out of 6,264 school service vehicles in Metro Manila, 1,997 are more than 15 years old.

Last week, the LTFRB also agreed to relax a similar age restriction on old cargo trucks and allowed their operators to make an appeal by proving their vehicles’ roadworthiness despite their long years on the road. Transport groups, particularly those providing hauling services at the ports, warned of a truck shortage if the measure is not modified. Erika Sauler and Diego Villegas