Bus firm in NLEX crash asks LTFRB to lift suspension

A bus company involved in a three-vehicle crash two weeks ago on the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) in Valenzuela City has asked the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board to lift the 30-day preventive suspension imposed on all six of its units.

Armando Teodoro Jr., lawyer for Chaze Bus Company operated by Wilson Hong Sy, appeared before the LTFRB in a hearing earlier Wednesday.

“Ang pine-pray namin sana, kung anuman ang magiging desisyon sa unit involved ay sana hindi madamay yung lima. Dahil yung lima, matino rin naman yung drivers doon. At the same time, hindi naman yon na-involve doon sa accident. Tapos at the same time, yun ang magiging source ng indemnity noong mga na-injured,” Teodoro told GMA Integrated News.

(What we hope is that, whatever decision is made about the unit involved will not affect the other five units. Those other five units have responsible drivers, and at the same time they were not involved in the accident. And they would be the source of the indemnity for the injured.)

Teodoro said 11 people were injured in the crash and that the bus company has so far spent P500,000 on their medical expenses.

The bus driver who caused the crash also appeared before the LTFRB.

Marlon Florentino, who has been with the bus company for only one month but had worked for several years as a driver abroad, said he swerved to avoid a truck.

“Lumalabas po kasi yung truck po galing Mindanao Avenue. Pinaalis po ng patrol yung dump truck kasi po naka-parking po doon sa may Mindanao Avenue. Ngayon po, dumarating po ako sa third lane to fourth lane. Tapos nakita ko yung truck na paparating kaya umiwas po ako ng third lane,” Florentino said during the hearing.

(The bus was coming out of Mindanao Avenue. The patrol had the truck leave because it was parked there. I was coming in the third lane to fourth lane. Then I saw the truck so I tried to avoid it.)

When asked how fast he was driving, Florentino told the LTFRB Board that it was about 60 to 70 kph.

“He was traveling at 60 to 70 kilometers per hour on an area that we can consider as heavy ang traffic volume. On that alone, we can already see negligence on the part of the driver. Kapabayaan po niya dahil sobrang bilis ng takbo niya [It was negligence on his part because he was going too fast],” LTFRB Chairperson Teofilo Guadiz told GMA Integrated News.

“Alam po natin na may interconnection. Automatic po yun, dapat po nagmemenor po tayo. Regarding doon sa speed or bilis ng driver, talaga pong mapupunta po siya sa kabilang linya dahil hindi na maagapan ng preno,” LTFRB Board Member Isagani Victorio also said.

(We nkow there's an interconnection there. It should be automatic that we slow down there. Regarding the speed the driver was going, he would definitely go into the other lane because he wasn't able to brake in time.)

Guadiz also noted that there may be issues regarding the roadworthiness of the unit.

“Of course, pansin mo nung nag-brake, biglang tumaob yung bus. Ibig sabihin, may problema po [You notice when it braked, the bus immediately turned over. That means it had a problem.]. So that's why we are looking into the answer. We may require an ocular inspection of the bus for us to fully appreciate kung meron nga problema doon sa makina ng bus [if there was something wrong with the bus's engine],” Guadiz said.

But the bus company’s lawyer said that their units are all roadworthy.

“Yun ang hindi namin puwedeng i-compromise dahil yung roadworthiness, maliban sa for compliance, mahalaga sa amin yon kasi yun ang buhay ng kumpanya. So pag hindi tumatakbo nang maganda at well-maintained, sa amin din babalik yon,” Teodoro said.

(Roadworthiness is what cannot be compromised. Not just for compliance; it's vital because that's the life of the company. When a unit doesn't run properly and isn't well-maintained, it's going to come back on us.)

The LTFRB also questioned why the bus was on NLEX when its route was PITX-Navotas via Edsa.

The bus company’s lawyer replied that they were given a special permit for the Angat-Monumento route.

“Unless mai-submit niya yung special permit na yun, ang presumption is wala siya sa rota. Kung hindi niya mai-submit, baka colorum pa yan. Totally, ang penalty ng colorum is P1 million,” Guadiz warned.

(Unless they are able to submit that special permit, the presumption will be is that they were out of route. It might even be colorum. The penalty for colorum is P1 million.)

The LTFRB chair is also requiring the bus company to submit the dashcam video of the concerned bus unit.

“Wala silang [They don't have a] dashcam. So they have to show to us na meron [that they have]. We gave them the benefit of the doubt. Pero pag wala [But if they don't have that], that would mean additional violation,” Guadiz said.

“Required sa lahat yon. Kaya lang dahil ang tama ay sa harapan, most likely susubukan naming i-retrieve yung dashcam [That's required of all units. But because the damage is at the front, most likely we will try to retrieve the dashcam],” Teodoro said.

Pending the submission of the dashcam video, the special permit, as well as the bus company’s formal answer, the LTFRB refused to lift the 30-day suspension imposed on the bus company.

“Until now, hindi ho namin nili-lift yung suspension ng [we will not lift the suspension on the] entire fleet. Hindi lang yung isa [Not just the one]. Until we have the next hearing so that we can be assured na pag nag-operate ulit ito sa kalye, sang-ayon po sa safety protocol yung gagawin ng mga bus na kanilang ilalabas sa kalye,” Guadiz said.

(So we will still not lift the suspension on the entire fleet. Not just the one. Until we have the next hearing so that we can be assured that when these buses are back on the street, they are compliant with safety protocols.)

The next hearing is scheduled on May 7.

The LTFRB also said that the special task force on road safety will meet next week to discuss the enforcement of existing road safety rules for PUVs including the dashcam requirement. — BM, GMA Integrated News