Thursday, April 24, 2008 CPA to buy buses to ferry passengers from terminals
THE Cebu Port Authority (CPA) yesterday admitted that it lacks buses to ferry passengers from the terminal to the vessels.
It also thanked Pablito “Bobby” Nalzaro, Sun.Star Cebu columnist and RGMA broadcaster, and a Provincial Board (PB) member in Zamboanga del Norte for bringing the matter to their attention.
“We are already addressing the matter of insufficient number of shuttle buses.
The acquisition of buses will pass through public bidding, hence, the CPA is presently renting regular passenger buses to augment existing units,” said CPA General Manager Angelo Verdan.
Transportation
Nalzaro wrote in his column yesterday that Board Member Cedric Adriatico passed a PB resolution condemning the inefficiency of the CPA in ferrying passengers from the terminal to the vessels.
He wrote that the lack of a CPA shuttle bus irks passengers and forces the security guard to open the terminal gate. Passengers then walk from the terminal in Pier 1 to Pier 2, the berthing area of George and Peter vessels bound for Zamboanga.
Verdan also agreed that the CPA lacks information dissemination at the terminal.
The Cebu Port Commission, the CPA’s policy-making body, will allocate funds to purchase more buses. The commission is composed of six commissioners: Carlos Co, Alfonso Allere, Verdan, Ramon Villordon, lawyer Tomas A. Riveral and Orlando Soriano.
Installation
“Although shipping lines are the party primary responsible for this type of announcement, the CPA, as the terminal operator, is also equally responsible. We will put appropriate bulletin boards for this purpose pending the installation of electronic boards similar to those in airports,” Verdan said.
“We would like to assure the public we have an ongoing program to upgrade our facilities and services to world class status. In the meantime, we are putting in place
interim measures in order to minimize inconvenience to the public”, Verdan said.
Verdan apologized for the inconvenience and ask for the public’s indulgence and cooperation.
“We also do appreciate the public’s bringing to our attention our lapses and the difficulties they have encountered,” he said.
Since Verdan assumed as CPA general manager two years ago, port services have improved, with zero crime rate, and implementation of big projects.
Illegal houses of squatters, some of which were used as hiding place of criminals, have been demolished and replaced with painted concrete fences. (EOB)
