Jeep modernization: Adapt or perish

The decision of President Marcos last week to stick to the Dec. 31 deadline for consolidating public utility vehicle (PUV) operators is truly commendable. This will finally get the PUV Modernization Program (PUVMP) moving to align the country’s public transport with global standards “by providing Filipinos with a system that is safe, reliable, convenient, and environmentally sustainable.” This was specifically the goal set when the program was launched in 2017 under the Duterte administration, a plan that has since been delayed by the pandemic and several postponements done whenever transport groups threatened to, or actually launched, disruptive strikes that inconvenienced commuters.

More than a year into the term of Mr. Marcos, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista reiterated the need to modernize PUVs, pointing out that this project will strengthen the CASA (convenient, accessible, safe and secure, and affordable) program in the transport sector and generate more jobs, among them mechanics, dispatchers, and administrative staff. Bautista explained that the modernization will also lead to more organized groups with efficient operations, end the inequitable boundary system, and allow drivers to earn more. The modernized jeepneys are also envisioned to have a GPS (a satellite-based radio navigation system used to locate a vehicle), an automated fare collection system, and a CCTV camera.

Benefits of consolidation

According to the Land Transportation Authority, PUVs that have not consolidated by the Dec. 31 deadline shall have their provisional authorities deemed revoked by Jan. 1, 2024. This leaves the PUVs no option but to yield to the modernization program.

Converting the thousands of jeepney drivers and operators into bigger and more efficient organizations is just the crucial first step in revving up the PUVMP. A 2018 study conducted by Joemier Pontawe of the University of Auckland, a licensed environmental (urban) planner here specializing in public transportation planning, and Ma. Sheilah Napalang, professor at the University of the Philippines National Center for Transportation Studies, clearly showed the benefits of consolidation as shown in the case of 1-Transport Equipment Aggregator and Management Inc. (1-TEAM). The fleet management company has been operating with modernized jeepneys since 2014, managing 30 brand new Euro 2 jeepneys of 20 operators that ply five Metro Manila routes. The study said the financial viability of modernizing the current jeepneys will greatly depend on efficient management and operations of the brand-new PUJs, something that is possible only by consolidation.

Biggest air polluters

A highlight is its findings on the impact on operators and drivers: Operators get a higher income while drivers and conductors receive fixed salaries and other employment benefits. It said jeepney drivers benefited the most after the modernization of 1-TEAM’s fleet by increasing their monthly net income to P23,000 a month, an increase of P7,000 to P13,000 from their pre-modernization take-home pay of P10,000 to P16,000. But as the study noted, transport groups need support in the form of fleet management and financial literacy training.

The PUVMP is very much delayed, prolonging the sufferings of commuters and the toll on the environment with the jeepneys being among the biggest air polluters with their inefficient diesel engines. It is therefore laudable that the government stood firm to get the program on track. As the President pointed out, “We cannot let the minority cause further delays, affecting majority of our operators, banks, financial institutions, and the public at large.” Pursuing the current timeline, he added, “ensures that everyone can reap the benefits of the full operationalization of our modernized public transport system.” In deciding to stick to the Dec. 31 deadline, the President noted that 70 percent of operators “have already committed to [or have] consolidated.”

Convert noisy minority

Still, the government has the opportunity to convert the noisy minority by hearing out their side. These transport groups have clarified that they were not opposed to the PUVMP but they want the government to simplify the program and not make it too much of a burden to operators. Surely there must be a way to address these concerns so that the modernization program will be embraced by all.

The so-called Magnificent 7, made up of seven big transport groups that expressed their support for the PUVMP in a meeting with the Department of Transportation last month, has this advice to unconvinced drivers: “We know that this modernization has sowed fear and doubt among our ranks … We are calling on our colleagues to be open-minded to the imminent modernization. This is necessary so that our country can adopt new technologies so that commuters and our public transportation can be safer and more comfortable.” The case study of 1-TEAM is a good starting point on how to go about the modernization plan. Groups opposing the modernization must remember that the times, to quote the great musician Bob Dylan, “they are a-changin’.” Adapt or perish.