In Mandaue City trike fare set at P25 per trip

CEBU, Philippines — Tricycle fare in Mandaue City will be pegged P25 per passenger, per trip.

The Mandaue City Council has passed a resolution last Tuesday adopting the resolution of the Tricycle-for-Hire Regulatory Board on the issuance of Special Permit to Operate (SPO) for tricycle and other safety protocols, once the city transitions from Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) to General Community Quarantine (GCQ).

To date, the city is still under ECQ.

City Administrator Jamaal James Calipayan, together with City Councilor Jimmy Lumapas, the chairman of the committee on transportation, and City Legal Officer Nenita Ceniza-Layese and the tricycle drivers in the city held a meeting last May 22 and have come up with guidelines to support the operation of the new Tricyle Route Plan in the city.

"Ang Special Permit to Operate sa tricycle ihatag lang sa mga legitimate franchise holders. Right now, we have 2,966 tricycles with franchises," said Krizzy Hyll Retuya, who is Lumapas' chief of staff.

In the resolution, only one passenger is allowed per trip in compliance with the social distancing protocol.  Drivers shall require their passenger to wear mask all the time and to present their quarantine pass.  A plastic barrier will also be installed between the driver and the passenger; a disinfectant shall be in place in every tricycle and operators/drivers shall disinfect their tricycles before and after operation every day.

The board said that during the GCQ, tricycles-for-hire may be allowed to operate under SPO within the clustered barangays that are classified into five zones.

The existing franchise shall be temporarily suspended, so as to give way to possible transfer of the operators to other zones, considering the increase and decrease in the number of tricycles allowed to operate in certain zones.

The board's resolution said that drivers 20 years old and below and those 60 years old and above shall not be allowed to operate any tricycles-for-hire under the SPO.

Franchisee whose age falls within the prohibition, may delegate the operation of their tricycles to their authorized representatives with valid driver's license.

Cargo tricycles may likewise be authorized to operate during the period of GCQ under the SPO provided that they shall operate within the authorized zone.

Schedule in number coding of motor vehicles is not applicable in the tricycles considering that they are operating only within the specified zones.

The Traffic Enforcement and Management shall strictly monitor compliance to the guidelines.  A violation may lead to the revocation of the SPO and the unit will be impounded.   GAN (FREEMAN)