DOTr: All PUV drivers required to undergo mandatory drug testing
DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon wants the public to feel safe on the road
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is putting its foot down following a recent incident that resulted in the deaths of multiple individuals after a bus hit multiple vehicles along the Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX).
Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon announced today that he will sign a Department Order that will require all PUV drivers to undergo mandatory drug testing. According to Dizon, the DOTr wants the riding public and motorists to be safe on the road. But due to a broken system and erring drivers who don't follow road safety, it has resulted in multiple incidents that have claimed the lives of people and injured others.
“People, like you and me, all of us here, feel unsafe on our own roads. We don't feel safe. That is the sad reality,” said Dizon.
As a result, Transportation Secretary Dizon shared he will impose several measures in cooperation with the other agencies, such as the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB).
Firstly, Dizon will sign a Department Order wherein PUV drivers will be required to undergo mandatory drug testing. The LTO and the LTFRB will be working with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) to implement the mandatory drug testing, which will go into effect immediately after the order is signed. The DOTr is looking to have drivers tested every 90 days.
Dizon is also asking the LTO and the LTFRB to revise the maximum consecutive number of hours a PUV driver is allowed to operate a vehicle. Currently, the ruling is at six hours, and Dizon is asking the agencies to reduce it to four hours, which will be consistent with other countries. Moreover, Secretary Dizon said that trips lasting four hours or more must have relief drivers.
“Kung ang biyahe ay mas mahaba sa apat na oras, mandated ang bus companies na maglagay ng relyebo, hindi konduktor! Ngayon ang ginagawa yung konduktor din ang ginagawang relyebo ng drayber. Hindi po puwede ngayon. Kailangan ngayon kapag more than four hours ang biyahe, kailangan may karelyebong drayber,” added Dizon.
[If the trip is longer than four hours, bus companies are mandated to provide a relief driver, not a conductor! Currently, some companies employ the conductor as the relief driver. This is not allowed anymore. Now, if the trip is more than four hours, there must be a relief driver.]
Last but not least, Dizon is asking both the LTO and LTFRB to make road-worthiness checks real. The DOTr Secretary added that, similar to the mandatory drug testing, Dizon has asked the agencies to come up with very strict, enforceable, and regular road-worthiness checks similar to the standards of other countries.
“Huwag na po tayong maglokohan, alam naman natin na ang road-worthiness checks dito sa atin hindi naman totoo eh. Pasintabi lang po kay Chairman Guadiz at kay LTO Chief Mendoza pero hindi naman talaga nache-check ang mga bus at mga jeep. Ngayon, hindi na po puwede iyan,” added Dizon.
[Let's not fool ourselves, we know that the road-worthiness checks here are not real. Chairman Guadiz and LTO Chief Mendoza aside, buses and jeepneys are not really checked. Now, that is no longer possible.]
With the recent incidents and crashes, the DOTr wants to fix the system, ensure both drivers and PUVs are road-worthy, and make the riding public (and motorists) feel safe again on the road. The only question now is, how fast can the DOTr and the other agencies act to prevent more crashes from happening?
