There was supposed to be a transport strike this week, as jeepney groups voiced their opposition over the December 31 deadline set by the government for the phase out of traditional jeepneys.
At the crux of this issue is the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP), which is supposed to address the numerous and persistent transport-related problems of the country. This is to be implemented by the Land Transportation Franchise Regulatory Board (LTFRB), in coordination with local government units and financing institutions.
What the PUVMP basically seeks to do is to modernize the age-old and iconic Filipino jeepney, which if you come to think of it, as a public transport vehicle and system, has been in dire need of an upgrade since at least half a century ago. We just haven’t gotten around to it because the jeepney, which is a mishmash of surplus parts, DIY ingenuity which showcases the best and worst of Pinoy “diskarte”, and unbridled creativity that has long been untouchable since it was somehow crowned the “king” of our archaic and chaotic transport system.
We have to admit that while the jeepney aesthetic has made it one of the more unmistakable symbols of our country, that is essentially the only thing it has going for it.
Being cheap and unregulated means it is powered by budget-friendly surplus engines that were already discarded by developed countries for being inefficient and too polluting. Those fossil-fuel burning monstrosities which have been DIY-maintained to last another 3 decades or so, consume more diesel, leak oil everywhere, and produce more emissions and pollution than any of their equivalents in any transport system all over the world.
Aside from the engines, almost everything else about the jeepney is DIY. Most have lights that don’t work properly, have steering, gearbox, and brakes that have to be operated by someone who knows all its intimate “quirks”, and a chassis and body that has never ever been crash-tested, aside from real-life crashes that usually involve real human flesh and bone, and no resulting improvements or developments to make that particular national treasure any safe, more efficient, or less of a menace to the environment and society.
Aside from the jeepney as a machine, there is also the system that barely qualifies as one. Drivers are perpetually distracted as they perpetually while on duty, operating a finicky vehicle loaded with passengers, always scanning the road for more potential passengers who could be anywhere since there are no designated stops and schedules, accepting payments and doling out change, all while brazenly violating multiple traffic laws and pumping out dreadfully loud music.
It is honestly no wonder the government has been forced to have them “modernized.”
The problem with modernization that is undertaken by bureaucrats and technocrats who don’t understand the system is that they think they can just decree it, and then call it a day. Their solution to the jeepney is to replace it with the “modern” jeepney, which isn’t even technically one because it is an aircon mini bus. And since they can’t be bothered to find a way for jeepney owners and operators to transition to a better system, instead they just laid down a deadline forcing everyone to simply replace their old units with new ones. For that earth shattering change to take place, there will be no government subsidies, just financing which can be granted if they “consolidate” in order to qualify for such loans. Government essentially just said it wants something to happen and then left it up to the impoverished jeepney sector to figure it out, or else lose their franchises and way of life.
It’s hard to blame the jeepney people for striking, especially when the government that allowed them for the longest time to operate their dinky, inefficient, and unsafe DIY units that now have zero salvage or resale value suddenly demands them to acquire brand new ones that cost 5-10 times as much, just to keep their livelihood. They have essentially been kicked to the curb, and unless they can abide by the new rules, they will be replaced with transportation conglomerates that can either afford or qualify for financing these new and supposedly modern jeepneys, that if you come to think of it, aren’t even much of an upgrade, considering the state of the rest of the world’s public transport systems in 2023.
When it comes to something as essential as the country’s public transportation system and the fate of a national icon, government has to do a better job than just setting forth a new set of rules and then expecting an entire sector that is mostly composed of borderline impoverished people to be able to have the wherewithal to comply. Financing is nice, but it’s not even special, and what they need is cash in the form of subsidies and incentives that can allow them to afford what should be the shared burden of modernization.
For our public transport system and the jeepney to modernize, we need a government and the affected private sector to be led by people with modern and progressive minds. Maybe that is the reason why the only solutions so far consist of a half-baked and forced modernization program that is facing transport strikes.*
