10,000 jeepney units are at risk of being decommissioned after the May 15 deadline.
Transport groups PISTON and Manibela are urging the Supreme Court to immediately release a TRO from the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP). The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) will begin to impound unconsolidated traditional jeepneys on May 16.
The PUVMP requires jeepney operators to transition to Euro-4 engines or electric engines, which can cost nearly P3M per unit, and drivers and operators say this is too costly for them to afford. They also question why the LTFRB refuses to sanction Philippine-made modern jeepney prototypes that adhere to the same requirements and cost just a third of the imported ones.
In a statement released by PISTON on April 29, Deputy Secretary-General Ruben Baylon said, “If the franchises and registrations of the jeepneys are canceled, it would cause grave injury to thousands of drivers and operators, as well as millions of commuters.”
In December 2023 a Petition for Certiorari and Prohibition with Urgent Application for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and/or Writ of Preliminary Injunction was filed against the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) by public utility jeepney operators and transport groups, led by PISTON.
According to the LTFRB 350,179 jeepney units have been consolidated, which is 78.33% of the total number.
