Passengers warned: Follow PUV protocols or be penalized

By: Pegeen Maisie M. Sararaña - Multimedia Reporter - CDN Digital | August 02,2021 - 07:45 PM

Passengers, who fail to follow PUV protocols will also be apprehended and penalized.

| CDN Digital file photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Aside from drivers and operators, passengers will also face penalties once they fail to comply with public utility vehicle (PUV) protocols in Cebu City.

For passengers, who will push to have a ride even if the vehicle is already full and beyond the agreed limited capacity, they will be apprehended and will be turned over to the holding facilities of the Prevention, Restoration, Order, Beautification, and Enhancement (PROBE) team, said Police Lieutenant Colonel Wilbert Parilla, deputy director for operations of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO)

PROBE has two holding facilities located in barangay Labangon gymnasium and barangay Cogon Ramos gymnasium.

The same fines would be slapped against the violators of the city’s health protocols. For the drivers and operators of these erring PUVs, Parilla said that they would only make a report and forward it to the Land Transportation Office (LTO).

He said it would be up to the LTO’s discretion on what penalties would be imposed against erring drivers and operators.

For now, Parilla said that they would be focusing in monitoring these vehicles to make sure that drivers would follow health protocols

“We have to impose strictly sa mga public utility considering nga usa nalang ni sila sa nahibilin karon nga possibleng nga anha makuha (transmission), especially nga bulk ang sakay sa sakyanan and then na obserbahan sab nga sa mga miaging adlaw, nga ang mga PUVs ug bus nato overloaded especially sa mga rush hour, sa buntag ug sa gabie,” he said.

(We have to impose strictly the health protocols in public utility vehicles considering that this is the remaining venue where possible transmission may happen, especially since some public vehicles have bulk numbers of passengers. As we observed, PUVs and buses were already overloaded, especially during rush hour, morning and evening.)

He said that the passenger capacity of each vehicle would vary according to its respective category.

Parilla further said that drivers and operators would be required to attach reminders to passengers that they only limit passengers to certain numbers only.

This will help policemen to also easily check on the number of passengers during their random check.

Here is the revised PUV protocols created by the city’s Committee on Transportation.