MANILA, Philippines — The government is exploring ways to improve the efficiency and reliability of jeepneys that could run on alternative fuels particularly liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and electricity.

Transportation and Communications Secretary Mar Roxas said his agency would conduct pilot test on the use of brand-new diesel engines to determine the most cost-efficient of the three modes.

The Department of Transportation and Communications, Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and the Department of Energy (DoE) are working closely with the University of the Philippines School of Mechanical Engineering to ensure the use of LPG-jeepneys and e-jeepneys as replacement to high emission diesel fuel.

The alternatives would be in the right specifications to assure their safety, reliability, and affordability.

“I’ve also met up with a number of transport group leaders such as 1-Utak, Pasang Masda, PEJODAP, Public Transport Workers’ Foundation, ALTODAP, ACTO and explained that the government will help them switch to a viable fuel alternative. Results of studies show this move will make good financial sense, particularly to the jeepney operators and drivers,” Roxas said.

Initial studies by the UP School of Mechanical Engineering commissioned by DoE, little savings, if at all, are realized from the conversion of a diesel engine to LPG.

“Since the engine conversion can cost somewhere around P300,000, the jeepney operators will be hard-pressed to pay this amount if no savings can be realized in the first place,” he said.

Roxas noted that the conversion of a jeepney to LPG is costlier than a taxi since the latter runs on gasoline, and only needs installation of a conversion kit.

“In the Philippines, almost all the jeepneys have second-hand, even third-hand engines, so converting to LPG requires changing the whole engine, including the transmission and differential, which is why the conversion is costlier. It would be grossly unfavorable to the jeepney driver or operator if they are saddled with this P300,000 price tag without the assurance of savings from the conversion,” Roxas said.

Alternatively, e-jeepneys cost about P650,000, and like LPG jeepneys, are touted as one of the solutions to solve the perennial problem of oil price hikes and environmental problems that are intertwined in the public transport sector.

The DoTC, LTFRB, and DoE will continue to look for links to manufacturers to ensure that the cheapest and most efficient engines can be developed, without favoring any supplier as part of the government’s “Tuwid na Daan” advocacy.