Twelve provincial bus routes connecting Central Luzon and Calabarzon to Metro Manila will be opened starting Sept. 30, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) announced on Saturday.
The LTFRB said the reopening of the routes was allowed upon coordination and approval of the concerned local government units.
Buses were required to obtain a Personal Passenger Insurance Policy and access to Global Navigation Satellite System or GPS systems for movement monitoring.
They were also required to display a QR code bearing information of every unit’s operator.
Drivers must wear face masks and shields at all times, mark seats designated to be occupied and undergo rapid tests every 14 days.
Passengers, meanwhile, need to do the following:
- present Philippine National Police-issued travel authority/pass at the point of origin issued within 48 hours prior to departure;
- present valid IDs as proof of residency/place of origin, age, workplace/school;
- wear face masks and shields;
- as much as possible, prevent the use of cell phones and talking inside the bus;
- have temperature tested before boarding (those with temperatures of 38 degrees and higher will not be allowed to board); and
- present written consent to undergo Covid-19 testing and/or quarantine as may be required by LGUs either at the point of origin or destination.
Passenger pick-up and drop-off are allowed only in designated stopover points and terminals.
The following were the bus routes allowed to reopen under LTFRB Memorandum Circular 2020-051:
Central Luzon to Metro Manila and vice versa
- San Fernando, Pampanga – Araneta Center, Cubao, Quezon City
Calabarzon to Metro Manila and vice versa
- Batangas City, Batangas – Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITx)
- Lemery, Batangas – PITx
- Lipa City, Batangas – PITx
- Nasugbu, Batangas – PITx
- Indang, Cavite – PITx
- Mendez, Cavite – PITx
- Tagaytay City, Cavite – PITx
- Ternate, Cavite – PITx
- Calamba City, Laguna – PITx
- Siniloan, Laguna – PITx
- Sta. Cruz, Laguna – PITx
Provincial buses were supposed to resume operations on June 22, according to the second phase of DOTr’s public transport guidelines, but mismatching community quarantine classifications delayed the resumption. John Ezekiel J. Hirro