UV Express (formerly known as FX, Metered Taxi, and GT Express) is a license to operate utility vehicles, particularly vans, as an alternative mode of public transportation in the Philippines. The term also refers to the vehicles themselves. This is one of the two types of share taxi services in the Philippines with the bus-like Jeepney. There is new law about transport franchising. Transport Cooperative thru the government office of the Cooperative Development authority.
History
The two kinds of UV Express Vehicles: A van-based UV Express (Left: Nissan Urvan) and an MPV-based UV Express (Right: Isuzu Crosswind)
In 1993, Toyota Motor Philippines introduced the third generation Tamaraw FX. This vehicle was designed and marketed as a smaller type of utility vehicle (as compared to the larger utility vehicles in countries like the United States). The Tamaraw FX could basically seat a driver and one passenger in front, three passengers in the second row, with a relatively large space left for luggage. This luggage space, however, has traditionally been used by operators to provide additional seating space, producing a rather limited legroom. This vehicle, as well as comparable offerings from other automobile manufacturers such as Mitsubishi Adventure, Isuzu Hi-Lander/Crosswind and in rarer instances, the Toyota Innova, would eventually be used as a form of public transport, colloquially referred to as the "FX".
Over time, the FX has been replaced by larger vehicles such as the Nissan Urvan, Hyundai Starex, Hyundai Grace, Kia Pregio, Kia Besta, Mitsubishi L300, Isuzu NHR i-Van, Foton View Transvan, and Toyota HiAce. With these new vehicles, the luggage space has been fully removed to add seating space, with the same limited legroom as the first ones, which has been a cause for complaints of overloading.