Commuters’ group urges drop-off, pick-up stops for UV Express instead of P2P

Commuters' group Lawyers for Commuters Safety and Protection (LCSP) on Sunday suggested that drop-off and pick-up stops for UV Express be established instead of the point-to-point (P2P) system recently ordered by Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board.

“We suggest that the UV Express ang dapat na pattern ay hindi yung P2P. Ipatong nila 'yung sa premium buses, meron selected stops,” LCSP president Ariel Inton told GMA News Online in a phone interview.

Dagdag na lugar para sa loading at unloading ng UV express units, inihirit ng isang grupo sa LTFRB. | via @Isa_Umali

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) May 26, 2019

On May 15, LTFRB amended Memorandum Circular No. 2009-19, abolishing the two-kilometer radius policy which allows UV Express to pick up and drop off passengers outside terminals and replacing it with a point-to-point policy.

Mga UV express vehicles na magsasakay at magbababa ng pasahero kung saan-saan huhulihin na. #SuperBalitaWeekend

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) May 26, 2019

Inton said that the new policy will inconvenience many commuters who need to get off at places other than the designated drop-off points in a P2P system.

“How inconvenient would that be sa passenger na hindi ka makakababa, e hanggang doon ka lang naman,” Inton told GMA News Online.

He urged the LTRFB to study first the demographics of commuters who take the UV Express.

He said, for example, that a bank teller might prefer taking a UV Express over a jeepney, because it is a closed and air-conditioned to protect her from the elements. She will also choose UV Express over taxis or transport network vehicle service (TNVS) because it is cheaper. 

When it comes to convenience and price, the UV Express is somewhere in between jeepneys and taxis/ TNVS.

Inton said that imposing a P2P policy for UV Express will take away the freedom of passengers to choose a mode of transport that is convenient for them.

“Marami silang pasahero na hindi naman papunta doon sa destination. What happens there nagkakaroon tuloy ng cutting trip. For instance, lahat ng pasahero baba ng Philcoa. Why will that driver go as far as Makati pa [para magsakay] samantalang wala na siyang pasahero diyan [sa Philcoa],” he said.

This situation, he added, could encourage the practice of bribery and extortion or "kotongan" among UV express drivers and law enforcers.

Commuters might also resort to buying cars, which will add to the traffic problems on major thoroughfares, Inton added.

“Pag-aralang mabuti ng DOTr [Department of Transportation],” he said. — BM, GMA News