LTO mulls stricter qualifications for license applicants

MANILA, Philippines – Driving license applicants might pass through the needle’s eye as the Land Transportation Office is mulling stricter qualifications following a rash of road tragedies involving passenger buses. A radio report quoted LTO head Alberto Suansing as saying that the agency has issued licenses to “undeserving" drivers because of loopholes in its present policy covering the issuance of drivers’ license. The report said that the LTO is also studying a proposal to limit bus drivers’ duty hours to six. Suansing last week said studies showed subjecting drivers to longer duty hours could lead to fatigue, mental stress and road rage that will likely cause more road accidents. Last week, road accidents involving buses occurred in Bukidnon and Cavite provinces and along the Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) in Mandaluyong City. On November 1, a Fermina Express bus figured in a deadly head-on collision with a utility vehicle on the North Luzon Expressway in Pampanga. The accident left five dead and 56 others injured. On October 21, a Joanna Jesh bus rammed a Mercedes Benz sedan on EDSA in Quezon City, causing an explosion that killed a doctor driving the car. Suansing said the accidents only underscore the need for applicants to undergo and pass psychiatric tests before they can be issued licenses. - Sophia Didace, GMANews.TV