Provincial buses remain barred from entering Metro Manila, Palace spokesman Harry Roque said Monday.
Provincial buses would only be allowed cross-border movement between areas under modified GCQ (general community quarantine), saying current quarantine restrictions still prohibited public transport between GCQ to modified GCQ areas.
“Kasama sa pinag-aaralan ay kung paano maipatutupad ang social distancing at contact tracing pati na rin ang koordinasyon sa LGUs (local government units) kung sakaling balik operasyon na ang mga provincial buses. Sa ngayon po, wala pang provincial buses,” he told reporters.
Provincial buses were supposed to resume operations starting Monday, according to the transport department’s initial plan, but Metro Manila’s GCQ extension until June 30 postponed the resumption.
Roque said the public transport restart still followed the same hierarchy: trains, buses, modern PUVs, UV Express and traditional jeepneys.
He said UV Express vehicles would be allowed later this month, and traditional jeepneys would only be allowed if transport capacity, with all other modes deployed, would not be enough to service commuters. John Ezekiel J. Hirro