BACOLOD City – The city government commissioned 42 public utility jeepneys (PUJs) to transport healthcare workers and essential services personnel to work for free starting Monday.
The jeepneys are plying the routes assigned to them from 4:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., according to Councilor Dindo Ramos, chairman of the City Council committee on transportation and traffic management.
All forms of public transport here are suspended from Sept. 8 to 30. The city is under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) due to rising local cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
According to Ramos, the move also gives drivers the opportunity to earn while public transport is not allowed.
The city government agreed to pay each jeepney P300 per trip or a total of P3,000 for all 10 trips per day.
The city government’s “Libreng Sakay” program designated seven jeepney stops in seven villages, with the city’s public plaza as the central drop-off area.
The trips start in barangays Granada, Estefania, Bata, Handumanan, Mansilingan, Banago, and Sum-ag.
Each route has been assigned six jeepneys – three for medical workers and three for essential services personnel.
There are 10 trips in each route from 4:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., with an interval of two hours between trips.
City residents going to the markets or traveling to purchase essential goods can board the jeepneys if they present home quarantine passes.
The Bacolod Traffic Authority Office assigned one personnel per route to assist the passengers.
During the enhanced community quarantine in Bacolod from March 30 to May 15, the Vallacar Transit Inc., operator of Ceres buses, deployed its buses to transport front-liners to work for free.
This time, Ramos said, the bus company can no longer provide the same assistance since it has already resumed operations.
As of Sept. 13, Bacolod has 2,574 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 988 recoveries, 1,551 active cases and 35 deaths. (With a report from PNA/PN)
