The Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) granted P152.1-million credit assistance to a Batangas-based transport cooperative for the acquisition of 85 modern Public Utility Jeepney (PUJs) units, to promote sustainable transport system in the province, the 7th most populous in the country.
The loan to the Batangas Transport Cooperative (BATRASCO) comes under the bank’s Program Assistance to Support Alternative Driving Approaches (PASADA), announced DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel G. Herbosa.
PASADA is DBP’s flagship program to modernize the country’s transport system, financing energy-efficient vehicles and support facilities to transport corporations and cooperatives.
As of end of September 2022, the state-owned bank has approved 98 accounts under the PASADA, with a total loan amount of P7.56-billion, to hasten the modernization of the transport sector.
Now, the program will fund the first batch of modernized public utility vehicles (PUVs) to be deployed in six Batangas towns.
“Our tie-up with BATRASCO strengthens our long standing commitment to improve the country's transport system," he noted.
BATRASCO is a duly registered cooperative with more than 2,000 members, most of whom are based in Batangas.
BATRASCO was the first transport cooperative in the province to have an approved loan with the DBP under its Local Public Transport Route Plan covering seven routes, according to DBP Senior Vice President and Head of Lending Program and Management Group Carolyn I. Olfindo.
The modern PUVs financed by DBP will serve the travel needs of the riding public, especially those in the cities of Lipa and Batangas and the municipalities of Mataas Na Kahoy, Rosario, San Juan, and Bauan.