FOR commuters taking public transport everyday to and from school or work, things just got a little more complicated than catching a ride and getting there on time.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Monday announced it will require public utility vehicles to get the names and contact numbers of passengers before they can get on.
LTFRB chairman Martin Delgra announced over the “Laging Handa” public briefing that public buses, jeepneys, taxis, and all public conveyance will be required to prepare a passenger manifest before they can travel. The document must contain the full name as well as the contact number of each passenger.
“Part of the safety protocol is the contact tracing measures that we will put in place for public transport system. The manifest or logbook that will contain the identification of the passengers, that will apply not just for buses but for the whole public transport system — jeep, taxi, all of them,” Delgra said.
He said compliance with the policy on keeping the passenger manifest will be a shared responsibility of PUV operators, drivers and conductors.
On the other hand, the LTFRB issued an appeal to the riding public to take the time to write down information about the PUV that they will be using for another level of contact tracing mechanism.
“We are requesting them …appealing to them to log down the information on the public conveyance. So just in case, God forbid, that a passenger falls ill after taking the same public transport that they rode on, they can help provide information to make contact tracing easier,” he pointed out.
Delgra added that the online logging of passenger information through mobile applications now being employed by taxi cabs and transport network vehicle service (TNVS) is also being encouraged to be adopted by PUV companies.
Compliance with this policy will be strictly enforced, the LTFRB chief told public transport company owners, drivers and conductors.
“If they will not comply, we will not hesitate to impose sanctions based on our Joint Administrative Order 2014. For the first infraction it will cost them P5,000 per violation, P10,000 for the second one and P15,000 for the next violation. Beyond that, we have the option of suspension or even cancellation of their franchise to operate,” Delgra said.
Earlier, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority spokeswoman Celine Pialago clarified that no public transportation is being allowed to operate in Metro Manila even after the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) was replaced by the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ). She explained that PUVs will be allowed to resume operations, albeit on a very limited capacity, only once the number of new COVID-19 cases improve significantly to warrant a declaration of a general community quarantine (GCQ).
Delgra said the LTFRB is keeping one step ahead of the quarantine conditions to be able to put everything in place for the resumption of public transportation services once circumstances turn for the better.
“These policies of the LTFRB on the deployment of public transport applies not just to Metro Manila, but across the country. We will insist on their compliance with the public health standards that we need to put in place,” he said.
Even as there are now limited operations of public transport in areas where they are not allowed, Delgra renewed his appeal to the public to limit their movement unless they have urgent business like purchase of food supplies and medicine or reporting for work.
“Just the same we need to be prepared in advance because we are looking forward to the time — hopefully, sooner than later — that we will be able to relax restrictions because the data we are seeing regarding the spread of the virus is improving,” he added.
