Manila to pay jeepney drivers P3,000 a day for free ride program

March 27, 2026 | 3:02pm

MANILA, Philippines — Manila will subsidize jeepney drivers' daily earnings so that passengers on participating routes don't have to pay fares, Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso announced Friday, March 27.

Under the program, the city government will guarantee drivers around P3,000 per day, depending on the unit type — roughly six times what many now take home amid surging fuel prices, the news release from the local government of Manila said. 

In exchange, the jeepney drivers will allow passengers to ride for free. More than 1,400 units are expected to participate, covering routes across Manila and nearby areas and potentially serving around 100,000 commuters daily, according to the Manila LGU.

Domagoso said the program was developed within 48 hours after a meeting with presidents of 22 jeepney operators and drivers associations.

Drivers currently earn as little as P200 to P500 a day because of the global oil crisis, Domagoso said. He described the city's intervention as a stopgap while acknowledging that national government assistance remains limited.

The free rides will initially run for five days spread across two weeks: Monday and Tuesday of the first week, then Monday through Wednesday the following. The city may extend the program depending on available funds, according to the release.

Domagoso's announcement comes on the second day of a nationwide transport strike where jeepney, bus, UV Express and transport network vehicle drivers walked off their routes to demand government action on fuel prices. 

The strike, led by transport group Manibela, set up more than 20 protest centers across Metro Manila and major cities in Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. 

The surging fuel prices are a result of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which has disrupted oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz and sent global crude prices above US$100 a barrel. 

Pump prices in the Philippines have breached P100 per liter after weeks of double-digit increases.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared a state of national energy emergency earlier this week through the issuance of Executive Order No. 110. 

The order activated a "whole-of-government" response framework to the oil crisis and authorized fast-tracked procurement of petroleum products. 

But transport unions have dismissed the declaration as a band-aid fix that does not address the root cause of the problem.

Transport groups like Piston and the No to Oil Price Hike Coalition are pushing for the suspension of excise and value-added taxes on fuel.

The government has so far offered a P5,000 one-time subsidy to public transport workers.