Starting with Guadalupe-Carbon route: PUJs back Friday

CEBU, Philippines —  The return of Cebu City jeepneys, starting with the Guadalupe-Carbon route, has been moved to Friday, November 20, to allow time for unit inspections.

Councilor James Anthony Cuenco, head of the city’s Jeepney Task Force, confirmed the rescheduling of the gradual return of jeepneys in the city streets.

“Nangayo’g extension ang Mandaue sa LTO (Land Transportation Office) inspection units till tomorrow (today) so Friday pa sila makasugod inspection sa Cebu City,” said Cuenco yesterday.

According to the councilor, there will be one-stop shops where personnel from different agencies will inspect the jeepney units. These shops could accommodate 50 to 100 units in a day.

Aside from the emission testing and inspection on the condition of unit itself, LTO will also check if the placement of the barriers is followed, if disinfectants, as well as drop box for the fare, are present, among others.

Cuenco said once the units pass the inspection, drivers will then be given the clearance to ply the streets of the city.

Why Guadalupe?

However, drivers of the Guadalupe-Carbon route will be the first to hit the road again based on the city’s Balik Pasada program as it has the highest density of commuters.

The councilor said 80 to 100 slots were opened for the said route alone, and so far, at least 40 units have applied.

“I suppose the others did not apply because they saw for themselves nga dili ready ang ilang units,” he said.

A negative COVID-19 test result is among the requirements for a driver to resume his work, on top of registration requisites.

Cuenco said the estimated number of jeepney drivers who have undergone the testing is 800.

“Continuous ni. We will have it every week. Twice a week ang swabbing,” he said.

Even with the slight increase of the active cases, Cuenco said Mayor Edgardo Labella has not given any instruction to limit the implementation of the Balik Pasada

“Wala man. Wala man ko kareceive og instructions. Hopefully, ma-contain ra unta ning rise in the cases because I’m really very worried about this. That’s why ang rollout nato is gradual. Wa nato gitingob tanan, so that we can adjust accordingly kung duna man gani simbako ang mga spike,” said Cuenco.

The active cases in the city are at 282 as of Tuesday, November 17.

‘Follow protocols, please’

To avoid COVID transmission from the transportation system, Cuenco urged the drivers and operators to strictly follow the protocols.

“Please, strictly follow the protocols that we have put in place. Klaro man kaayo. Sa atong paginspeksyon nila, ato nang ipaskil kanang mga rules didto sa ilang mga jeepneys,” he said.

“So please, follow it religiously because, simbako, if we will experience a considerably high amount of infections, then the city, through the Mayor, will be forced to suspend the roll out. Balik napud ta sa uno ani. Sayang ang atong mga efforts. Please be cautious about it,” he continued.

Cuenco warned those who will violate health guidelines: “Duna tay mga marshals nga magbantay sa kadalanan. End to end, point to point. If there are violations that will be found out, then dili na padaganon ilang unit. Suspend gyud dayon.”

With regard to the entry of jeepneys coming from other local government units, Cuenco said he asked Labella to give them at least two weeks to observe the flow of the Balik Pasada in the city before allowing jeepneys from other places to come in.

“Ato sa ning i-perfect ang atoa. Lisod man kaayo na wa pa ta kasugod, naa natong taga-gawas. Unahon sa nato dinhi sa Cebu City. The Mayor agreed to my proposal,” said Cuenco. — JMD (FREEMAN)