ILOILO CITY, Philippines – Teams from the office of Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas will consult with the Iloilo provincial government to iron out kinks in the Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP) that caused havoc among commuters in June.

At his regular press conference on Monday, July 4, Treñas said the most urgent task was to consult with the province and tweak the LPTRP, which he put on hold starting with an executive order on July 1.

The city enacted the program in January through an ordinance. The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) approved the LPTRP in February.

The rollout of the new routing scheme caused hours of waiting time for rides, especially for an estimated 100,000 non-residents who work or do business regularly in the center of a metropolitan area that includes the municipalities of Leganes, Pavia, Santa Barbara, Cabatuan, San Miguel, Oton in Iloilo province, and five municipalities in the island province of Guimaras.

Treñas said the LTFRB told him that the province, not the city, must write to ask approval for changes affecting other towns.

“We will not oppose, and then the LTFRB will give authority,” the mayor said in the local Hiligaynon language.

He also said teams would farm out to get inputs from barangays and transport organizations before finalizing the changes.

After asking stakeholders to weigh in, the city received “a flood of recommendations,” Treñas said. The result of the informal consultations in June prompted the reelected mayor to come up with his July 1 executive order putting on hold the LPTRP for 45 days.

Play Video

Before resuming the program, the city also needs to craft a communications program to lessen confusion among drivers, the mayor stressed.

Must Read

Iloilo City asks for ‘patience, consideration’ after jeepney plan backlash

– Rappler.com