CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City will finally reopen all jeepney routes after almost three months of appeal by jeepney operators through the Jeepney Task Force (JTF).
Mayor Edgardo Labella promised to issue an Executive Order (EO) within the week, probably on Friday, May 28, 2021, so that jeepney operators of these routes can start to apply in the Balik Pasada Program.
“I am preparing the Executive Order already upon the recommendation of Councilor James Cuenco nga ato nang ablihan og balik ang atong traditional jeepney,” said the mayor.
However, the mayor warned the jeepney operators that they must follow the health protocols as well as the traffic regulations because if another surge of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is observed, the routes will be closed again.
The mayor trusts that the Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) that will be able to manage the return of more jeepneys into the streets.
Councilor James Cuenco, the head of the JTF, welcomed the development saying that the opening of the routes would fill in the demand for public transportation especially in interior barangays where the jeepneys have not yet been allowed to return.
He cited Opra in Barangay Kalunasan as an example where people are forced to pay P100 for informal motorcycle taxis just to reach the main thoroughfares.
“This should be the start of the end of the endless suffering of our commuters especially those routes nga wala maservice gyod sa traditional jeepney routes karon. What a relief it is that finally nadungog na gyod ilang pangandoy,” said Cuenco.
The CCTO said there are 60 routes in the city in the pre-pandemic and at least 20 have already been opened.
Cuenco expects that the routes to open will already incorporate some of the new feeder routes for the forthcoming Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system to be implemented by the end of the year.
He noted that the reopening of the routes comes just in the right time as buses are pulling out of Cebu City and preparing to return to their provincial routes.
Cuenco has managed to ask the bus operators to stay until the jeepneys return, and with the buses gone, the transportation demand will even soar.
The councilor thanked Mayor Labella for finally allowing more jeepneys back on the streets.
The CCTO said that all jeepneys who want to return to the streets will still go through the Balik Pasada process including the inspections by the Land Transportation Office (LTO-7) and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board in Central Visayas (LTFRB-7).
This means that only qualified units and operators can return to the streets. /rcg