LTO opens offline license 

printing office in Alturas

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, July 7 (PIA)—In an attempt to catch up with the massive backlog in printing its new and renewal license cards, Land Transportation Office (LTO) here in Tagbilaran gets help from an unlikely partner. 

LTO Regional Director Victor Emmanuel Caindec and Alturas Group of Companies (ASC) general manager Marlito Uy signed July 7, a Memorandum of Understanding which facilitated the opening of LTO’s Temporary Offline Printing Office (TOPO) at the 4th Floor of the Alturas Mall. 

LTO Tagbilaran District posts a 43,000 backlog in its issuance of drivers’ licenses to its patrons, clients, customers and the general public. 

RD Caindec said the backlog ballooned when the government decided to issue licenses that are valid for 5 years. 

The five-year validity cards need new systems where more information is needed and the LTO has to revamp its analog system to migrate into digital one.

This means a recapture of data from the licensed driver: vital information, biometrics, digital image and other relevant information, which adds up to the daily grind of new licenses and renewals. 

Tagbilaran LTO is not exactly the kind that other government revenue generating offices are being maintained, the space is cramped for the hundreds of its daily clients. The air-conditioning often breaks and the internet connection is unstable, clients have often complained.

The problem compounds when the internet connection slows down, which also crawls the online processes of the office, RD Caindec reported. 

He said, to date, LTO Tagbilaran has incurred backlogs reaching 43,000 unissued cards.

And while the LTO regional Office is getting all complaints via the social media, Caindec said they are trying to fix the problem.

Opening a TOPO was a solution the LTO used in other areas in the region with similar backlog issues. 

As they office needs temporary facilities to address the backlog, the LTO requested ASC to allow them some free space for a TOPO in Tagbilaran. 

ASC was willing to waive its rental fees for the TOPO, which it stated in the MOA. 

According to Caindec, with the opening, LTO estimated that the printing office can finish about 10,000 license cards in a month at most, thus effectively solving the backlog after about three months in the mall temporary office. 

LTO bared that services here is free, and all one does is to bring his completely processed driver’s documents to the new printing office and have his biometrics and other personal data encoded in the system. 

At the opening of the TOPO, it took a client a maximum of 10 minutes to get hold of a newly printed driver’s license. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol) 

LTO RD Caindec, City Mayor John Geesnell Yap II and AGC general manager Marlito Uy cut the ceremonial ribbon marking the official operations of the LTO TOPO at the 4th floor of the Alturas Mall, July 7. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)