Cortes assures Mandaue trike drivers taken off national roads will not lose jobs

The Mandaue City government will develop a new route plan to rid national roads of motorcycles. (Screengrab from the Mandaue City PIO Facebook page)

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The city government of Mandaue has assured tricycle drivers and operators that they will not lose their livelihood despite the directive of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to ban them from national highways.

Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes said the city’s Tricycle Task Force is now preparing new routes that will bring the tricycles that are now traversing the major thoroughfares to the secondary roads.

“Ato silang dad-on sa secondary kay sa balaod naa man gyud nga sa secondary ang tricycles. So walay ma-displace. Atong paningkamotan nga kadtong naay franchise, madala nato nga adto na magdagan sa secondary roads,” Cortes said in an interview.

(We will bring them to the secondary roads because under the law, they are really allowed to ply there. No one will be displaced. We will try hard to ensure that we can bring all those that have tricycle franchise to operate in the secondary roads.)

Read: Task force eyes new route plan to get tricycles off national roads

Among the present tricycle routes in Mandaue City that traverse national roads are those plying to Barangays Maguikay and Paknaan from the city center.

Last February 17, 2020, DILG issued a memorandum circular giving local government units 30 days to formulate a new route plan for tricycles in order to take them off national roads.

This is in line with the road clearing directive that President Rodrigo Duterte issued during his fourth State of the Nation Address (Sona) in July 2019.

Cortes said the tricycle route plan that the city’s TTF will come up with will be incorporated in the Local Public Transport Masterplan (LPTRP), which now awaits the approval of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

Under the city’s proposed LPTRP, new PUJ (public utility jeep) routes will cover the national roads that are now being serviced by the tricycles.

For those heading to Barangay Paknaan, for instance, Cortes said there will be PUJs that will now traverse D.M. Cortes Street heading to Cansaga Bay Bridge.

Passengers going to the interior of Barangay Paknaan can then take a tricycle ride at the junction of S. Jayme Street, a secondary road leading to the inner section of the barangay./elb