The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has announced the reopening of its Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) consolidation program, offering a renewed opportunity for operators and drivers to either join existing transportation cooperatives or establish their own. This initiative, formalized through Department Order (DO) No. 2025-009, extends to routes already serviced by similar consolidated entities.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has affirmed the government’s commitment to the Public Transport Modernization Program (PTMP), emphasizing its potential to deliver a service-oriented public transport system that prioritizes commuter safety without jeopardizing the livelihoods of drivers and other transport workers.
Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon highlighted that the newly issued DO specifically aims to ease the financial pressures faced by both individual operators and existing cooperatives. These entities have been grappling with loan repayments to banks due to the significant costs associated with modernizing their vehicle fleets, along with other expenses related to registration and the consolidation process itself.
Secretary Dizon stated, “We need to help those who have already modernized and joined the program. They are our priority, and we need to give them a reprieve so they don’t incur further losses.” He further emphasized, “What’s important is to give an opportunity for our operators who were unable to join the consolidation previously to return and operate legally.”
The transport chief also clarified that this adjustment to the PTMP will now permit operators and drivers to integrate into or create new cooperatives even in areas where consolidated routes already exist.
“That is now an option for those who weren’t able to join by April 2024—they can either join an existing consolidated cooperative or they can form their own, but for routes with below 60% consolidation where there aren’t many operating vehicles yet, they can enter there,” Secretary Dizon explained.
Regarding older jeepney units, Secretary Dizon assured that they will undergo rigorous roadworthiness inspections to ensure passenger safety remains the paramount concern. “We need to ensure that safety is our paramount concern,” he asserted.
Under the provisions of DO No. 2025-009, PUV operators and drivers who missed the initial deadline for forming cooperatives, as well as those with pending consolidation applications, are now covered. The order, signed by Secretary Dizon on Tuesday, May 6th, outlines specific guidelines.
The DO explicitly states, “PUJ and UVE operators covered by this DO shall be allowed to join existing consolidated transport service entities (TSEs) in routes with 60% and above consolidation [rate], subject to the conformity of the said TSEs.”
Furthermore, it adds, “Covered PUJ and UVE Operators may be allowed to consolidate (form a new TSE or join an existing TSE) in routes with less than 60% consolidation, provided that they were previously granted authority to operate on the said routes.”
In the interim, the DO also addresses unconsolidated operators, stating that they may be permitted to operate on existing and rationalized routes that currently lack consolidated TSEs, pending the full implementation of the route transfer plan.
