Motorcycles that are being used for public transportation in the Philippines will be deemed illegal beginning next week amid the looming end of a pilot run.
Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) board member Antonio Gandiola Jr. said in an interview with the Philippine media on Monday that the LTFRB recommended to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Congress the termination of the pilot study which sought to review the safety of motorcycles for public transport. He cited legal impediments in the issue.
Gardiola heads the technical working group heading the pilot run.
He said DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade already approved of the suggestion, and that the LTFRB sent a similar report to Senator Grace Poe, who heads the Committee on Public Services.
“It’s better to terminate it (the study) because we’re already on our third month yet we still cannot gather data,” he was quoted as saying on the sidelines of a Senate hearing, adding that every individual engaged in ride-hailing “will be apprehended.”
“They know that there is a law covering this, saying that motorcycle is still a private mode of transportation,” he noted.
From thereon, transport network companies Angkas, JoyRide, and Move It would be compelled to cease their operations.
Apart from the report, Gardiola said the LTFRB also recommended that Angkas’ parent firm DBDOYC be blacklisted for its “defiance on mandated guidelines.”
Amid the worsening traffic situation in the Philippines particularly in Metro Manila, commuters found a haven in motorcycle taxis for transport.
A total of 30,000 Angkas riders will be affected by the termination.
A report by Bloomberg showed that driving a kilometer in Metro Manila worsened anew last year to five minutes as of September as compared with the 3.8 minutes recorded in April.
PHOTO COURTESY: ANGKAS FACEBOOK PAGE
