VIOLATIONS. Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia (center) with Land Transportation Office-Region 7 OIC Regional Director Glen Galario (left) and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board-7 Regional Director Eduardo Montealto Jr. during a meeting with 13 bus operators who violated the "no street pick-up policy", at the Cebu South Bus Terminal on Monday (July 3, 2023). The bus operators are facing penalties for picking up passengers outside the terminal. (Photo courtesy of Cebu Capitol PIO)
CEBU CITY – The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Monday warned bus operators who will continue to defy the Cebu provincial government’s electronic ticketing system.
Eduardo Montealto Jr., regional director of LTFRB-Central Visayas said the agency will not hesitate to impose fines or even suspend and cancel franchises of bus operators who will not follow the e-ticketing system being implemented in the province.
Montealto issued the warning after 13 bus operators were caught recently picking up passengers outside the Cebu South Bus Terminal.
The bus terminal has fully implemented an electronic ticketing system since 2021, which, according to the provincial government, is designed to make the travel experience of passengers comfortable.
Montealto said the 13 bus operators are now facing a fine from P5,000 to P10,000 and a possible cancellation or suspension of their franchises for violating the "no street pick-up policy".
“There are two violations each (of the 13 buses) actually. First is opening the door while the bus is in motion and picking up passengers outside of the terminal and not in the designated area,” Montealto told the Philippine News Agency.
The terminal management noticed that many of the buses would go out of the CSBT empty or half-full and pick up passengers along the Natalio Bacalso Avenue, he said.
This has resulted in heavy traffic in the area as buses illegally stopped along the road to load people, he added.
Meanwhile, the provincial government said the bus operators have appealed to LTFRB and the Land Transportation Office not to impose sanctions as they pledged to abide by the traffic rules and support Governor Gwendolyn Garcia’s program for seamless travel to the south through the e-ticket system.
The 13 bus operators also vowed to submit to LTFRB and LTO affidavits of the undertaking, pledging not to commit the same violation again. However, Montealto said his office would study the affidavits first.
“It depends on how they are going to make a promise,” Montealto said, adding that his office has yet to receive copies of the affidavits. (PNA)
