Mandaue traffic chief asks public to honor bus stops

A passenger boards a bus in a designated bus stop along SB Cabahug Street in Barangay Centro in Mandaue City on June 1, 2020. CDN Digital photo | Brian J. Ochoa

CEBU CITY, Philippines—The executive director of the Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (TEAM), Atty. Jamaal Calipayan, is asking the public to honor bus stops as the city prepares for the new normal in public transportation.

Mandaue City mayor Jonas Cortes inspected the 120 Ceres buses on Monday, June 1, 2020, as the city downgraded its quarantine status from enhanced community quarantine to general community quarantine.

Read: More buses to ply Mandaue City’s streets starting June 1

Cortes, together with councilor Jimmy Lumapas and Calipayan, was on-site to inspect these buses that was set to start plying their respective routes within and outside the city on Monday morning.

“Among awhag sa atong mga tig sakay nga adto lang gyud ta sa bus stop sukwahi sa atong na andan sa una nga mag pa hatod ta or mag pa drop gyud ta kung asa ta gusto mo naog. Sa pag kakaron naa gyud tay bus stops every five hundred meters,” said Calipayan.

(We ask our commuters to honor the designated bus stops in the city, unlike what we are used to doing before, hailing and asking to be dropped off in our desired location. This time, we have bus stops every 500 meters where buses can drop and load passengers.)

Read: TEAM: Installing bus stops 95% done as Mandaue set to go GCQ

According to Cortes, buses are among the best options for quality public transportation aside from taxi cabs, transport network vehicles (TNVS), and tricycles, which were also allowed to start operating under GCQ.

Jeepneys are still not allowed to operate pending the special permits from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board.

“Kinahanglan kita mo subay sa mga lagda nga gipa higayon sa IATF.  Unya usa ni sa atong nakita nga maka hatag og maayong transportation dinhi sa dakbayan sa Mandaue. Gani, dili ni sa Mandaue lang as far as Cebu, Lapu-Lapu ug Consolacion nya Lilo-an,” he said.

(We need to follow the rules set by the IATF. The buses are one of the best options to give good public transportation here in Mandaue City. Actually these buses will is not just limited within Mandaue City but can go as far as Cebu, Lapu-Lapu, Consolacion and Lilo-an.)

The buses will only carry fifty percent of its original capacity, which is around 25 persons per trip. Bus trips start at 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

“So expected nga ubay ubay gyug pasahero kay ubay ubay naman sad nga mga negosyo ang atong gi ablihan kay mao lage kinahanglan ato sang balansihon ang panginabuhi sa atong mga ka igso-unan kani usa ni sa pag pangandam nga atong gipa higayon dinhi sa local government sa dakbayan sa Mandaue,” said the mayor.

(It is expected that there will be quite a number of passengers today knowing that more businesses are open again. We need to put a balance between their livelihood, this is one of the preparations made by our local government unit here in Mandaue City.)

Quarantine passes will still be required for those going to the groceries or markets while essential workers only need to present company IDs or any document that can support their travel to ensure safety and to still limit the movement of the people in the city. /bmjo