The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Sunday announced that it has opened 8,750 slots for transport network vehicle service (TNVS) in Metro Manila, Ilocos Region, and Bicol Region, with huge shares allotted for electric vehicles (EVs).
For Metro Manila, all of the 7,500 slots will be exclusive for EVs including Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) and Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs).
“Conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) other than PHEVs, and other vehicle technologies that do not fall within the BEV or PHEV classifications shall not be eligible for the slots opened herein,” the LTFRB Memorandum Circular 2026-084 read.
“The classification of the vehicle as a BEV or PHEV shall be based on its registration and classification by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and other applicable government standards and issuances,” it added.
In the Ilocos Region, 325 out of the 650 slots opened will be for EVs as well.
Under LTFRB Memorandum Circular 2026-88, the allocations for public transport units across the Ilocos Region are distributed as follows:
- Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, and La Union: Each province was granted 150 slots, split evenly between 75 internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and 75 non-ICE vehicles.
- Pangasinan: Approved for a total of 200 slots, divided equally into 100 ICE and 100 non-ICE units.
In the Bicol Region, 300 out of 600 TNVS slots will be allocated for EVs.
The LTFRB said the slots opened for TNVS is due to the growing demand for public transportation.
“We in the LTFRB are sensitive to the request and demand from the people and the opening of the slots is also in support of the government’s aggressive economic push across the country," said LTFRB chairperson Greg Pua, Jr. in a statement.
The LTFRB said the application for the available slots once the related memorandum circulars are published.
In his fifth State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.pushed for a transition to electric public transportation as he called on the electric vehicle (EV) industry to support the government’s transport modernization efforts.
Marcos later signed Executive Order No. 121 which provides fiscal incentives for the local manufacture of hybrid and battery electric passenger cars, commercial vehicles, and their parts and components.
