ILOILO CITY — The crackdown on illegal public transportation in Western Visayas is gaining pace, with the Land Transportation Office Region 6 reporting that at least 170 “colorum” vehicles have been taken off the road since January 2026.
The latest tally comes after two more vehicles were intercepted during roadside enforcement in Iloilo City, pushing the regional count higher as authorities increase random inspections along major roads, transport corridors and regional entry points.
The campaign is targeting vehicles that carry paying passengers without the required Certificate of Public Convenience, or CPC, from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board.
For commuters, that missing franchise is more than paperwork. Authorities say unauthorized vehicles can operate outside safeguards involving vehicle inspections, passenger insurance and professional-driver requirements.
Two new cases pushed the tally to 170
The latest enforcement operation underscores just how varied colorum operations can be.
According to Panay News, one of the vehicles recently impounded was allegedly being used under a regular paid arrangement to transport government employees to and from work. The operator was reportedly billing a government agency each month despite lacking authority to provide passenger transport services.
The second vehicle, described as a subcompact hatchback, was allegedly operating as an unauthorized public-utility rental and charging customers ₱5,000 per trip.
Both vehicles were impounded, while their owners face administrative sanctions and possible additional penalties.
That development appears to explain the jump in LTO-6’s running total. Daily Tribune reported on September 6 that 168 colorum vehicles had already been apprehended in Western Visayas since January. The two newest cases bring the figure reported by Panay News to 170.
The crackdown has more than doubled since April
The scale of the campaign becomes clearer when the numbers are compared with earlier enforcement data.
In mid-April, Daily Tribune reported that LTO-6 had apprehended 78 colorum vehicles since the beginning of 2026. At the time, two privately registered vans were intercepted in Iloilo City for allegedly carrying passengers for payment without an LTFRB franchise.
That means the reported total has risen from 78 in April to 170 by September — an increase of 92 apprehensions in roughly five months.
Earlier operations also showed authorities moving outside Iloilo City. In May, LTO-6 said enforcement teams in Aklan and Antique apprehended 428 motorists for various violations during a six-day campaign, including four vans allegedly operating illegally as public transport.
Northern Iloilo was also targeted. A three-day operation in May resulted in 370 motorists being cited as enforcement teams used roadside inspections, surveillance and intelligence gathering to identify unregistered vehicles and suspected colorum operators.
The pattern suggests the current campaign is no longer limited to occasional checkpoints. LTO-6 has increasingly described its strategy as one of sustained enforcement, designed to prevent operators from simply returning to the road after individual crackdowns end.
Why authorities are targeting ‘car rental’ arrangements too
One area receiving particular attention is the use of privately registered vehicles as informal rental or passenger services.
Earlier this year, LTO-6 warned private vehicle owners against joining arrangements that present themselves as ordinary “car rental” businesses while actually transporting passengers for compensation without regulatory authority.
Daily Tribune reported that under LTFRB Memorandum Circular No. 2024-038, rules that had previously allowed exemptions for certain rental arrangements were repealed. Vehicles being used for hire, including those operating through leasing arrangements covered by the regulation, are required to secure the appropriate LTFRB authority.
That distinction has become increasingly important as transport services move beyond traditional buses, jeepneys and UV Express units.
A privately registered van or car may look no different from an ordinary vehicle on the road, but once it is used to transport passengers commercially without the necessary authority, regulators may treat it as a colorum operation.
The financial penalties can be severe
Getting caught can carry much more than a traffic ticket.
The LTO’s published fines and penalties under Joint Administrative Order No. 2014-01 classify private vehicles operating as public utility vehicles without LTFRB authority as colorum.
First-offense fines vary according to vehicle type. The published schedule lists penalties including ₱200,000 for vans, ₱120,000 for sedans and ₱50,000 for jeepneys, while buses can face a ₱1-million fine. The rules also provide for a minimum impounding period of three months in applicable first-offense cases.
Separately, the Philippine News Agency reported in April that the Department of Justice recognized the LTFRB’s authority to impound colorum vehicles, a development welcomed by the transport regulator as it strengthened enforcement nationwide.
Actual penalties depend on the circumstances and vehicle classification of each case.
Passenger safety is the government’s strongest argument
Authorities frame the campaign not only as a regulatory issue but as a passenger-protection measure.
Legitimate public transport operators are required to satisfy licensing, vehicle, franchise and other regulatory requirements before carrying paying passengers. Colorum operators can bypass those controls while still competing for the same customers.
LTO-6 Regional Director Gaudioso Geduspan II has repeatedly argued that consistent enforcement is necessary because unauthorized operators can otherwise resume business shortly after enforcement activity subsides.
In August, he said the regional office was expanding the participation of district-level law enforcement units to support sustained operations throughout Western Visayas, despite limited manpower.
His message in the latest campaign was equally clear: passenger safety should take priority over excuses from unauthorized operators.
But enforcement creates another challenge
There is also a broader transport-policy question behind the crackdown.
Removing unauthorized vehicles may improve regulation and strengthen protection for commuters, but in areas where public transportation is limited, aggressively taking vehicles off the road can also reduce available transport capacity.
LTO-6 has acknowledged that tension.
Geduspan previously said enforcement should not simply end with apprehension. The agency is also encouraging operators to legalize their operations, allowing legitimate vehicles to return to service without creating unnecessary transport shortages for commuters.
That could become one of the most important measures of whether the campaign works.
The headline number — 170 vehicles removed — shows that authorities are finding illegal operators.
The bigger question is whether sustained enforcement can convert those operators into legal transport providers instead of simply forcing the colorum market to move somewhere else.
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