LTFRB suspends entire Dagupan Bus operations

A day after a deadly bus accident in Isabela province, authorities ordered Thursday the grounding of the entire 100-plus-unit fleet of the bus firm involved. Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) chairman Alberto Suansing said that in August, he already warned of grounding of buses of firms involved in accidents, after the deadly road smashup in Quezon province. "Nagbigay ako ng utos na i-ground lahat na bus ng Dagupan Bus Lines (I gave an order to ground all buses of Dagupan Bus Lines)," Suansing, who gave the order while attending a safety conference in Brunei, said in a predawn interview on dzBB radio. In past instances, he noted bus firms have several franchises that allow their other units to continue operating if one franchise is suspended. "Maraming prangkisa ito (Dagupan Bus Lines), iba-iba (This bus firm has a lot of franchises)," he said in a separate interview on dzXL radio, citing their records on Dagupan Bus Lines. Also, he pointed out that he had already given enough warning about the possibility of grounding of entire fleets, if one of the units gets involved in deadly accident. Suansing was referring to a bus accident last August, when at least eight passengers were killed after two buses figured in a head-on collision in Lucena City in Quezon province. "Ako [ay] nagbigay na ng babala noong nagkaroon ng aksidente sa Quezon, na sa susunod na magkaroon ng ganyang klaseng sakuna, di lang ang franchise ang isu-suspend kundi buong fleet na ng kumpanya (I already gave a warning that if there is another accident like that, I will suspend not only the franchise but I will ground the entire fleet)," he added. 'Multiple franchises' Suansing said the order covers all franchises of Dagupan Bus Lines, whose "multiple" franchises have more than 100 units. He said the suspension is preventive and will last while the LTFRB investigates the incident. "Kung yung bus na yan authorized tumakbo sa ruta na yan at higit sa lahat kung bakit nagkaroon ng ganoong sakuna at ano ang ginawa ng driver (We will see if that bus was authorized to travel along that route, and what the driver did)," he said. At least nine people were killed after a Dagupan Bus Lines unit with body number 168 collided head-on with a pickup truck and hit a second pickup truck in Cauayan City in Isabela before dawn Wednesday. [See story: 8 dead, 24 hurt in Isabela road accident] The bus then fell into a ravine. Citing initial reports reaching him, Suansing said at least seven of the fatalities were passengers of the bus. Suansing downplayed fears the suspension may lead to a shortage of buses plying northbound routes for the All Saints' weekend. "Di naman magkukulang, may sapat na bilang ng mga bus. May ibang kumpanya ng bus na bumibiyahe (It will not cause a shortage of buses. There are other firms applying for special permits)," he said. Suansing also said he expects the insurance firm of Dagupan Lines to shoulder the expenses for the fatalities, and the treatment of the injured passengers. As of posting time, the bus firm had yet to issue any comment on Suansing's order. - GMANews.TV