Operators urged: Upgrade bus units

One of the Yutong buses of Silverlines, Citrasco’s premium bus line, costs P5.4 million each. (CDN PHOTO/VICTOR ANTHONY V. SILVA)

TOURIST bus operators are encouraged to upgrade their units.

Edilberto Mendoza, past president of the Cebu Association of Tour Operation Specialists (Catos) made this call as he welcomed the launching last week of three new buses of Cebu Integrated Transport Service Cooperative (Citrasco) in Cebu.

Mendoza said he was glad someone finally took on the challenge, especially since existing tourist buses here are already “old.”

“Nobody wants to invest in tourist buses because it requires huge capital and the DOT (Department of Tourism) requires brand new units,” he told Cebu Daily News.

On average, each unit would cost between P8 million and P10 million, Mendoza said.

Aside from the old buses, he also said that some of these bus units have defective air conditioning systems, faulty microphones for tour guides and are dirty or foul-smelling.
“That’s just so embarrassing,” he said.

He encouraged bus operators to do the upgrade of their units to give tourists a good impression that Cebu is serious in marketing itself to the rest of the world.

“Our Asean neighbors are really serious with their tourism industry. We should do the same by upgrading our amenities,” said Mendoza.

Citrasco buses

Ryan Benjamin Yu, chairman of the 800-member Citrasco, said investing in tourist buses had never been in their initial expansion plans when the group was established in 2012.

“But now, we have to expand. We have more flights and the (Mactan Cebu International Airport) is set to have two terminals. We want to complement this growth,” Yu told reporters during the launch of Silverlines, Citrasco’s premium bus line, on Tuesday (August 8).

5.95M tourists

Latest available data from the Department of Tourism in Central Visayas (DOT-7) obtained by Cebu Daily News showed that the region welcomed 5.95 million tourists from January to December 2016, up 29.17 percent from 4.6 million during the same period in 2015.

Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo initially set the region’s target to 7 million for 2017, but may set it to an “ideal” 4.5 million due to issues on safety the country has been facing since April.
Citrasco spent P16.2 million for the three brand new Yutong buses from China, which cost P5.4 million each.

Yu described the Chinese brand as high-end and even likened it to Mercedes Benz and BMW.

Each bus can accommodate 49 passengers, not counting the driver and cameraman, with each seat molded like a bucket to ensure maximum comfort.

He said the cooperative also plans to buy 20 more premium tourist buses within the next two years.

Citrasco has applied for a regional franchise for its three new vehicles with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and expects its permit to come out by next week.

With a regional franchise, the tourist buses will be able to take passengers from Cebu to Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor.

Buses and The Big 5

Cebu Provincial Tourism Officer Joselito “Boboi” Costas also welcomed Citrasco’s initiative to acquire brand new buses, which would ply routes in the province.

Costas said that additional tourists buses could definitely boost the potential of “The Big 5” by providing convenience and access to these areas to prospective tourists.

He was referring to the marketing campaign focused of five Cebu towns primed to be sustainable ecotourism destinations in the province. These are Alcoy, Alegria, Aloguinsan, Boljoon and Argao.

“That’s great. In my opinion, it’s great to have more buses, especially with the launching of “The Big 5” (drawing near). Take for example in Aloguinsan. As far as I know, there are only two bus companies plying that route. So, public ride is rare. This will definitely help our tourism industry,” he said.