Commuters nationwide will soon enjoy free rides aboard different public utility vehicles (PUV) this week with the rollout of the Service Contracting Program (SCP) in other parts of the country.

In a Laging Handa briefing on Monday, DOTr Undersecretary Mark Steven Pastor said the free ride program — implemented as part of the SCP — has already begun at the Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (Edsa) Busway and will be expanded to several other land transportation routes in the country.

“Makakaasa po ang ating mga kababayan na babalik po itong libreng sakay, hindi lamang po sa National Capital Region (NCR) kung hindi sa Luzon, Visayas at sa Mindanao. Lahat po ay makikinabang dito sa ating programa (The public can rest assured that the free ride program will return, not only in NCR but also in Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. Everyone will benefit from the program),” Pastor said.

The SCP began at the Edsa Busway earlier to help address the surge in commuters during the Holy Week exodus and the planned shutdown of all railways in the NCR during the extended holiday break.

To date, Pastor said around 550 buses are providing free rides at the Edsa Busway and may yet increase based on demand, especially during the Holy Week.

“Iyan po ay dadagdagan ng ating gobyerno lalung-lalo na po ngayong Semana Santa through our LTFRB (The government will augment that, especially during the Holy Week through our LTFRB),” Pastor said.

Under the SCP, the government will pay operators or drivers of public utility vehicles (PUV) — including both modern and traditional jeepneys, UV Express, and buses — for their daily operational costs in return for free rides or provide them with monetary incentives based on their daily performance.

With the rising costs of fuel and other commodities, he said the new SCP has increased incentives given to operators and drivers who will join the program.

“Dati po ang atin pong bus dito sa Edsa Busway, PHP82 per kilometer po ang bayad, ngayon po ay 84 pesos per kilometer na po. Ganoon din po sa ating mga jeep (Before, here at the Edsa Busway, the pay was PHP82 per kilometer, now it is PHP84 per kilometer. It is the same for jeeps),” Pastor said.

Aside from these “operational incentives,” PUV operators will also receive a one-time incentive of PHP5,000 per unit to cover their pre-operating costs.

The PHP7 billion budget for the third phase of this latest implementation of the SCP was released by the Department of Budget and Management on March 21 and was downloaded to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board on March 23.

Originally launched under the Republic Act 11494 or the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, the SCP was meant to provide a temporary livelihood to displaced transport workers during the Covid-19 pandemic. (PNA)