MANILA, March 9 (PNA) — Concerned government agencies remain committed towards improving public transportation in Metro Manila with the Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) recent decision to cancel the franchises of two erring bus companies that figured in a fatal accident along EDSA last November, Malacañang said on Sunday.
Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. told a press briefing over Radyo ng Bayan that the government continues to uphold the safety and welfare of commuters by keeping a watchful eye on public utility vehicles.
“Ang pagpapawalang-bisa ng LTFRB ng mga prangkisa na sumasaklaw sa 21 buses ng Elena Liner at 18 units ng MGP Trans ay bahagi ng kampanya upang masiguro ang kaligtasan ng ating mga mamamayan na araw-araw na sumasakay sa mga bus at mabigyan ng hustisya ang mga nasawi at nasugatan sa mga aksidente,” Coloma said in a statement.
He added both the LTFRB and the Land Transportation Office (LTO) also maintain their regular inventory and inspection of the transportation companies’ vehicles to make sure they have the necessary documents to continue their operations.
“Walang humpay ang ginagawang imbentaryo at inspeksyon ng LTFRB at LTO sa mga garahe ng mga pampublikong sasakyan upang masiguro na sapat ang kanilang papeles sa pagbiyahe, kabilang na ang pagsawata sa mga tinaguriang kolorum o mga walang kaukulang prangkisa upang makapamasada,” he said.
In addition, the government has been making substantial improvements on the country’s major thoroughfares, and the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has toughened its traffic management by providing more closed circuit television cameras across the city.
Malacañang has also repeatedly asked drivers of public vehicles to exercise extreme caution at all times whenever they ply the country’s busy roads and always abide by traffic rules and other regulations.
At least seven people died and 38 were injured when an Elena Liner bus crashed into an MGP Trans unit at the EDSA-Magallanes loading bay on November 14, 2013. It was found out that MGP Trans was operating illegally as it was not yet registered with the LTFRB and LTO at the time.
Elena Liner and MGP Trans were just two of the many bus companies sanctioned by the LTFRB after being involved in a string of deadly road mishaps bridging the last quarter of 2013 and the first two months of this year.
The LTFRB issued a 30-day suspension against Mayamy Transport Corp. after one of its buses caused multiple injuries to five passengers after crashing through a center island along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City in broad daylight last week.
Last month, the LTFRB also suspended all 228 busses of GV Florida Transport Inc. when one of its units plunged into a ravine in Bontoc, Mountain Province, resulting into 15 fatalities and 31 injuries.
The infamous Don Mariano Transit also had its operations canceled by the LTFRB in January due to several violations in light of the December 16 Skyway accident that killed 22 people and wounded 20. (PNA)