LTFRB suspends 24 units of bus firm involved in Baguio road crash

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has suspended 24 units of a bus company involved in a road crash in Baguio City that killed one of the bus firm’s employees and left six passengers injured.

In a statement, LTFRB chair Vigor Mendoza II said the suspension is for 30 days while an investigation is underway to determine if there were lapses committed under the rules and regulations of the issued Certificate of Public Convenience.

“We commit to an impartial and no-nonsense investigation not only because it is our mandate but because it is the life and limb of commuters that are stake when it comes to public transportation,” Mendoza said.

The mishap happened in the early morning of Tuesday, June 16 along the Marcos Highway in Baguio City.

According to reports, the bus was headed to Baguio City when it hit a truck parked by the side of the road. The bus conductor died after he was trapped inside the bus.

At least six other people were injured and were taken to the hospital.

A LTFRB show cause order (SCO) required the bus firm to conduct a drug test of all its drivers as well as a road worthiness inspection of the 24 suspended bus units.

It also asked the bus company to explain in notarized writing why it should not be sanctioned for hiring a reckless driver.

Mendoza said they also asked for the license plates of the suspended bus units to ensure compliance with the suspension order.

He stressed the need to expedite the payment of insurance to the family of the deceased bus conductor and to the injured passengers, as he ordered the LTFRB’s regional officials regularly monitor the firm’s compliance with insurance payment. — JMA, GMA News