CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Bus companies operating in Mindanao have welcomed the move of the local governments to open their borders to public utility vehicles (PUVs) in their respective jurisdiction following the decision of the national government to ease up travel restrictions in the country.
The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has recently issued Resolution 101 essentially declaring that mass transit is now allowed through the approval of the “uniform travel protocols” for land, air, and sea.
In response, the local governments in Lanao del Norte and Misamis Occidental, for instance, have given PUVs, especially inter-regional buses, the green light to enter and pass through their borders.
For its part, the management of the Rural Transit Mindanao Inc. (RTMI) said this decision by the national IATF will be beneficial to the transport of both people and goods throughout the island.
“We are happy that the local government units are now gradually opening their doors to domestic travelers and in allowing our buses to operate directly to our inter-regional bus routes,” said Celer Estologa, Yanson Group of Bus Companies (YGBC) legal and media relations manager for Mindanao, in a phone interview Saturday, March 13.
RTMI is one of the seven subsidiaries of the YGBC operating in all over the Philippines. YGBC is considered as the largest bus conglomerate in the Philippines.
Aside from RTMI, two other YGBC subsidiaries, Bachelor Express Inc. and Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc., are also plying multi-routes in Mindanao.
Estologa said the resumption of inter-regional public transport operation would mean that their employees, particularly drivers and conductors, could now get back to work.
“Also, passengers are very excited and emotional to go home and reunite with their families,” he said.
YGBC has assured that its bus companies will continue to implement the required health protocols of the concerned local government units to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Meanwhile, both the riding public and the public transport companies are awaiting for the local government of Zamboanga City to approve the opening of its borders so that trips, specifically the Cagayan de Oro-Zamboanga City route, could already resume. Newsline.ph
