House to probe bus firms’ ‘deadly’ practices

MANILA, Philippines – The House committee on Metro Manila development is set to conduct an inquiry into the bus operators’ illegal practices called “colorum,” “kabit,” and “buntis,” which make traffic gridlocks worse and contribute to deadly accidents in the metropolis.

Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco, committee chairman, filed House Bill 379 to investigate what he called the indiscriminate issuance and misuse of franchises by bus operators.

“While no one disputes that buses are crucial to Metro Manila’s public transport system, debates continue on just how many should be on the road, where, and what time,” Tiangco said. “These have been accompanied by bickering on which government agency or unit should determine such details.”

“The boorish behavior of (drivers of) many public buses—as well as the fact that far too many of them are on the road—aggravate the situation,” he added.

Tiangco said the probe will also review the regulations and procedures of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to determine the loopholes as well as the extent of the accountability of agency officials in issuing franchises.

He also cited infighting and turf wars among concerned agencies as hampering efforts to find a long-term solution to the traffic problem.

He said the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the LTFRB, other government agencies, and a foreign-funded study gave out varying figures on the number of buses plying the streets of the nation’s capital.

Tiangco said a December 2007 report showed that of the 2.34 million vehicles passing through EDSA in Metro Manila on any given day, around 139,227 are public utility buses.

A report funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the “EDSA Bus Route Revalidation Survey” showed there is a 50-percent oversupply of buses during the morning peak period between 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.

While the MMDA’s count of city-bound buses in August 2006 was 3,290, JICA estimates that there are close to 5,000 of such buses regularly plying EDSA. The LTFRB updated count is 3,800, half of which are provincial-based.

Tiangco said there is a substantial difference between the JICA estimate of 5,000 and the LTFRB’s count of 3,800. Further research showed this could be traced to three illegal practices allegedly done by bus operators: the “colorum, kabit and buntis,” he said.

“Colorum,” the most popular, is when a bus company without a franchise fields buses or when a franchised bus company fields buses in unauthorized routes. “Kabit” takes place when a bus firm allows other individuals or companies to piggyback on its government-issued franchise for a fee. “Buntis” occurs when several other buses use the license plate of one bus authorized to use one route.

Tiangco said in view of the fact the MMDA recorded almost 1,488 bus accidents in the first five months of 2009 and an average of 13 bus accidents per day in 2008, there is a need to investigate the need for further regulation of and stricter guidelines for the bus transport industry.

He said official statistics also showed that 80 percent of the buses in Metro Manila figured in traffic accidents in 2006. A significant number of buses also appear not to be roadworthy, Tiangco said.

He also cited the practice of some bus operators to field their smoke-belching buses at night when they would not be apprehended by the authorities. –Paolo Romero (The Philippine Star)