MANILA, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine government has said it will push through with its plan to ban jeepneys that are older than 10 years from the streets to modernize the diesel-fuelled passenger cars, local media reported on Tuesday.
The jeepney "modernization" plan is an attempt to cut traffic emissions and ease the worsening traffic congestion gripping the Philippine capital and other urban centers.
The jeepney, which traces its roots to the U.S. Willys jeep used by the U.S. army during World War II, are elongated, flatbed passenger vehicles that have been plying the Philippine streets for more than five decades. It remains the main transport for millions of Filipinos across the archipelago.
However, old jeepneys are being blamed for polluting the air and causing traffic jams.
Jeepney operators and drivers are up in arms over the planned measure, saying it is meant to kill small transport operators in the country. Militant groups have staged transport strikes to protest the planned jeepney ban.
In a senate hearing on Monday, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the jeepney modernization plan will push through as planned.
"You can do protest actions, but you must follow the law. You can do protest actions, but you must give importance to the benefit of the majority," Tugade told reporters.
Duterte has already warned the jeepney operators to cooperate with the government.
"I'll give you until the end of the year. Follow the law. Because on January 1, if I see your jeeps are unregistered, old, I will have them dragged in front of you," Duterte said.
Already, the government has warned the operators that they will face harsh sanctions against those who will continue to violate the law.
Aileen Lizada of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has earlier said the plan aims to modernize the decades-old transport system by introducing "reliable and environment-friendly jeepneys to commuters."
LTFRB is a government agency that regulates public land transport in the Philippines.
There had been similar attempts in the past to jazz up the image of the diesel-fueled jeepney to make it more eco-friendly and adapted to the changing times.
