Tougher penalties for operators of overloaded PUVs sought

Senator JV Ejercito on Wednesday filed a bill proposing to impose stiff penalties on operators of overloaded public utility vehicles (PUVs).

Ejercito filed Senate Bill No. 1446 or the Anti-Overloading Act of 2017 amid the celebration of the 4th United Nations Global Road Safety Week and the accident involving an overloaded bus that fell into a 100-foot ravine in Nueva Ecija.

A total of 31 people were killed while at least 46 others were injured when the LeoMaric minibus fell into the ravine while bound for Candon, Ilocos Sur, last month.

Ejercito said it is high time for the government to punish PUV operators who overload their units at the expense of commuters' safety.

“We have to update and strictly implement the law because in reality, almost all public utility vehicles have a habit of overloading vehicles at the expense of passengers’ comfort and safety," Ejercito said.

"We should be strict on these particularly for vehicles traversing mountainous passes," he added.

Ejercito's bill proposes to penalize operators P50,000 and the suspension of their franchise for the first offense, P250,000 including suspension of franchise for the second offense, and P1 million and the revocation of franchise for the third offense.

Ejercito said those accountable for any fatalities in a PUV accident should also be imprisoned from a minimum sentence of two years and one day to a maximum of six years. —Joseph Tristan Roxas/KBK, GMA News