MANILA, Philippines (3rd UPDATE) – Manila Mayor Isko Moreno announced on Tuesday, July 23, that he would seek the suspension of the Baclaran to Divisoria jeepney route.

“The City Government of Manila will file a suspension of the entire Baclaran-Divisoria line,” Moreno said in a press briefing in Manila City Hall.

What is it for? The Mayor said this was meant to stop jeepney drivers from cutting trips, after he received multiple complaints from Manila citizens. 

Cutting trips involve jeepneys not completing their routes to avoid heavy traffic, and asking passengers to descend far from their original destinations.

Moreno said this will only be the first of many petitions for suspension of routes in Manila. He added that he was also mulling the suspension of routes for other public utility vehicles.

The process: The city government will file a petition with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board for this purpose.

If the LTFRB allows it, jeepneys would not be allowed to travel directly between the two high-traffic areas, affecting thousands of passengers as well as the livelihood of jeepney drivers.

The proposed suspension, Moreno emphasized, would only be temporary. He said he would leave it to the LTFRB to decide the duration of the suspension, if it approves the proposal.

What went before: Moreno had earlier held a dialogue with leaders of jeepney drivers’ associations on July 9, where he appealed to drivers not to cut trips.

Among the new mayor’s initiatives was to get jeepney drivers to complete trips to and from destinations offered. 

Incomplete trips, he said, were among commuters’ woes which forced them to walk long distances on busy roads or pay almost double for additional trips to get to their destinations. – Rappler.com