‘TOLERATED COLORUMS’: Understanding the ‘Looking-For-Rider’ Mototaxi Service in Iloilo City Streets

By Kobe Patrick M. Serinas

In the brink of heavy traffic and limited commuting hours, Ilonggos found a new way to ease this burden through social media, specifically Facebook groups—LFR, or “looking-for-rider” services.

Motorcycle taxis, or mototaxis have been prevalent across the country in recent times. This service is being used for their convenience and quick delivery system. The emergence of mobile applications such as Angkas or MoveIt has also paved the way in streamlining this service to the public. These applications can be accessed through mobile devices and can be used to book registered motorcycle riders.

Being accredited by the Land Transportation Office (LTO), these riders serve multiple purposes; they can cater angkas—take passengers from one place to another, and pabili o padala—or serve as delivery riders for food or any other items.

Iloilo City, despite being one of the major Philippine cities in the country, lacks these services. Officially accredited mototaxi applications are not available within the city’s coverage. This leads Ilonggos to become more creative, establishing Facebook groups composed of commuters and “riders” designed for informal mototaxi booking and basically operating as colorum PUVs.

Here’s how it functions; a commuter can post on a Facebook group with riders. These posts shall contain “LFR” or “looking-for-rider,” and including the pickup and drop off areas may be optional for privacy purposes. The commuter will wait for a few minutes for riders to see the post. Riders, upon seeing the post, will flock to the comment section saying that they are available alongside their rider codes—in what seems to be a competition to see who gets the customer first. The commuter after all, has the freedom to choose who to respond to. Mode of payment is then settled through private Messenger chat, pricing varies on the distance, ranging from P50.00 and above.

Ilonggo commuters, specifically students who travel early for class, and call center agents who work the nightshift have now opted for “angkas” rides more than jeepneys and taxis as they are cheaper and can swerve easily through lanes, offering a faster ride.

Unfortunately, Angkas and other official application-based mototaxi services are unavailable in Iloilo City, that is why despite the convenience and accessibility they serve to the table, these riders in the streets of Iloilo will basically stay as colorum riders until then.

Registered Mototaxi Services: Why It’s Not in Iloilo City

To explain this widespread informal mototaxi booking system in Iloilo City, Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Region VI Director, Atty. Salvador Altura Jr. was invited for an interview.

Discussing firstly on the rationale behind mototaxi services in the country, Atty. Altura explained how current mototaxi services in major cities are still not part of the law to legally operate in the country. They are permitted to operate under a pilot study by the LTFRB and other related government agencies on transportation.

“The Technical Working Group (TWG) are the representatives of LTFRB, LTO, and MMDA. [In the pilot study], they designated pilot areas where these motor taxis were given permission to operate. Now, Iloilo City is not one of those areas. And the last time I heard, the Technical Working Group (TWG) has already collated the data needed, and they have submitted this, and its recommendation to the house of representatives for the drafting of the possible amendment to that law,” Atty. Altura explained.

these three cities have access to official application-based mototaxi services.

Additionally, Atty. Altura also acknowledged that despite their awareness of the existence of these unregistered and ‘colorum’ riders, they are beneficial and serve their purpose to Ilonggo commuters.

“The operations of mototaxi [in Iloilo City] continue to be on the premise of tolerance. Of course, since these pilot areas continue to operate the motorcycle taxis, other highly urbanized cities also join even without the benefit of a permit from the Technical Working Group. On the legal aspect, there is no legality. But on the practical aspect, they continue to serve the needs of our commuters,” Atty. Altura said.

Mototaxi services, or “looking-for-rider” services in the city can be rooted from the traditional habal-habal, which is technically the same—motorcycles as public utility vehicles, but has been existing in the rural areas of the Philippines for a long time.

Since these riders are unregistered, the LTFRB could not really regulate them, but Atty. Altura also elaborated on how these riders can of course, function legally given that the law is amended in the future and include Iloilo City in the areas where mototaxi services can function.

“They are just being tolerated kay na-anad na ang mga taho and it will upset the supply of the public transport if gulpi mo sila dula-on, aside from the fact nga if ara na sila sa dalan, budlay na pa-untaton. We do not have their numbers. We do not know how many of them are operating kay waay naga-agi sa amon, they have not applied for any franchise. But once may ara na sila franchises, masulod na sa amon system, we have existing regulations kay indi man na mag-lain ila operations sa other transport modes,” Atty. Altura added.

Convenience, Access, and Affordability: Riders to Save The Day

The “looking-for-rider” system within the city of Iloilo has truly been playing an important role in commuters’ everyday lives. For instance, Drie Relano, a student from the University of San Agustin has described how riders have helped in his university life, especially during late night campus activities.

“I only prefer to book riders when I leave my school late at night, usually around 2:00-3:00 AM, since public transportations such as jeepneys and e-buses are not accessible at night in my preferred location,” Drie explained.

Riders are self-operating. They do not follow a certain schedule, and though regulated by a certain “admin” or “leader” from a Facebook group they have registered to be a part of, they can still freely take customers whenever they want to.

And despite being a frequent passenger, Drie still expresses concerns about his safety and security when booking riders through social media.

“When booking a ride, after posting ‘LFR’ in a Facebook group, riders usually initiate a chat via Messenger. Their messages often start with “Hi! Available rider here! #DO123,” which I believe are codes used to track them and identify who is responsible for their monitoring. I only feel about 30% safe, as they seem like hustlers just trying to make a living,” Drie explains.

A valid point, riders are unregistered from both LTO and LTFRB, aside from this, riders can use fake Facebook accounts as well, codes may help to verify that they are a part of a trusted riders’ Facebook group but questions of safety and security are still intact. In line with this, Drie hopes that in the future, Angkas and other permitted mototaxi companies will begin to operate in Iloilo City.

“Yes, I’d like to see [Angkas and other official and licensed mototaxi services] become more common in [Iloilo] city in the future because they offer a cheaper rate than booking a private car or hailing a taxi,” Drie said.

Survival and Opportunity: Message from a Rider

On the other hand, perspectives from riders were also explored during the course of the investigation. Mark, a rider of the Facebook group called “Palihog Iloilo Rider 24/7” says that being a rider actually compensates for the same salary he had in his previous job, which is a driving factor in helping him decide to become a mototaxi rider.

“Dati OFW ako, sa Saudi ako ga-ubra. Nagpuli lang ko kay kita ko sa mga magulang ko nga daw okay man mag rider, ang sweldo daw ga match man sa abroad,” Mark said.

According to him, he earns between P600.00 – P1,000.00 in a single day, which is basically within the same range he earns when he was working abroad in Saudi Arabia, plus, he gets to have the comfort of his own home and being with his family, while having the freedom in handling his time, all he needs is his motorcycle, an extra helmet, and a phone, and he is good to go in providing for his family. He has been doing this as a source of living for six months now since he came home from Saudi Arabia.

Explaining when is the best time to stay online and find customers, Mark expressed how Ilonggo commuters nowadays have been experiencing heavy traffic within the metropolitan area of Iloilo, which is something they take advantage of to get customers.

“Rush hour, aga kag hapon, traffic—mga estudyante ma-late, amo na ga rider sila, sa ugto naman, tamad mag-gwa ang mga taho kay tama ka init, gapa-rider nalang sila ka mga panyaga kag kung hapon mag-puli sila grabe traffic, gusto man nila mag-shorten ang travel time nila magpuli,” Mark explained.

However, what comes with this rush hour is also the prevalence of LTO and auxiliary traffic officials on their posts across various spots within Iloilo City who, according to Mark, have been questioning riders from time to time.

“May time nga may ara [LTO nga gapinamangkot]. Bali kung may angkas ka, indi kami authorized mag carry passenger [nga pasahero] kay bawal,” Mark reveals.

But despite these possible troubles that may arise from their side, they can easily bypass this by saying that they are private motorcycles and their “angkas,” or their passengers are someone they know. Regardless of this easy and uncomplicated way of earning a living as a driver, Mark still hopes that he could be an official registered one day, wishing that Angkas and other application-based mototaxi services are going to be available within Iloilo City. The moment that it operates, Mark revealed that he would not hesitate to apply.

“Nami mag-apply sa pira ka adlaw kung may masulod nga mga amo na eh. May sistema sila ya bi, sa amon, wala sistema kag prone kami sa scam nga pag-book. Mas mayo kung may app gid,” Mark elaborated.

After all, these riders are just looking for a source of income. They wish to make use of their motorcycles not only as their personal or family vehicles, but also to earn a living, even if it means they operate as unregistered colorums. Anyway, the city tolerates them, not because they are legal and permitted, but because it is already inevitable and uncontrollable at this point where traffic and social media coexists.

Tolerated But Not Accepted: Case Closed… For Now

Though mainly positive in its purpose, the exclusion of Iloilo City in the pilot areas where mototaxis are permitted to operate makes the Ilonggo “riders” illegal colorums—and they have no choice but to stay so until amendments are done by the congress.

In his closing statements from the interview, Atty. Altura hopes to spread a message on both perspectives regarding this issue.

“On two sides. For the one providing the service, they are de facto providing public transport. And, public transport is a form of a common carrier, and operating a common carrier under the civil code, requires a higher degree of diligence, extraordinary diligence. On the other hand, the commuters should be aware that the kind of transport that they are availing are not legal forms of transport, and if for whatever reason, most likely, say convenience, they take that [form of transport], they should understand that they are taking that at their own risk,” Atty. Altura explained.

In a fast-growing city such as Iloilo, foot and road traffic increases rapidly. Top it up with emerging industries, educational opportunities and businesses, people flock to the city more often than usual. There are times when the traditional public utility vehicles people usually rely on such as buses, jeepneys, or tricycles are unreliable—due to various reasons such as their small quantity, complicated routes, or highly congested traffic.

One form of transportation saves the day—motorcycles. Easily swerving through lanes, passing by the narrowest shortcuts, veering through traffic, and passing through other vehicles, offering a quick ride. Something the Ilonggo riders have taken advantage of and made their source of income, with the integration of Facebook groups as booking systems.

“Looking-for-rider” mototaxi service setups may be creative and helpful, but perhaps, it reflects a bigger problem within the country’s transportation industry. With only three major cities where mototaxi services in the form of application-based booking systems are legally operating, other cities who are experiencing fast-paced growth and development may be left behind. And with the absence of fully-established and realized laws and policies pertaining to mototaxi service in the Philippines, riders outside the pilot study areas who only wish to earn a living will stay as colorum PUVs until then.

Tolerated but not accepted. The case of “looking-for-rider” mototaxi services in Iloilo City is closed… at least for now.