Sunday, April 27, 2008 Jakosalem wants to ban mini-buses from terminal
TO help ease the heavy traffic along N. Bacalso Ave. and in southern Cebu City, a city councilor is seeking to ban all mini-buses from the Cebu South Bus Terminal (CSBT).
Councilor Sylvan Jakosalem wants mini-bus operators to use other accredited terminals intended for vans-for-hire and public utility jeepneys (PUJs) in the south.
He is also seeking to impose penalties ranging from P1,500 to P4,500 for violators of the ordinance, and the impounding of vehicles for the third and subsequent offenses.
He proposed to amend City Ordinance No. 1784 passed in 1999, which required all public utility buses, including mini-buses, to load and unload passengers at the CSBT.
In his proposed amendatory ordinance, Jakosalem said the presence of mini-buses at the CSBT contribute to the worsening traffic congestion within and outside the bus terminal and along N. Bacalso Ave.
The situation had owners of three bus companies and commuters complaining to the City Traffic Operations Management (Citom), saying their buses have difficulty going in and out of the terminal facility.
“One of the studied and recognized ways to decongest and ease the traffic flow in the terminal is to prohibit the loading and unloading of mini-buses there, and to transfer them at designated or accredited V-hire terminals,” Jakosalem told Sun.Star Cebu.
The CSBT is owned and operated by the Cebu Provincial Government.
If the ordinance is approved, it is seen to affect the income the Capitol gets from terminal operations, specifically its collections from mini-bus operators.
The ordinance defines mini-buses as those that have a seating capacity of 30 to 49 passengers, excluding the driver and conductor.
“Although we don’t own the terminal, the City has the right to regulate traffic and the use of terminals within the city through an ordinance,” the councilor said.
Another solution Jakosalem recommended is to allow bus operators to own and operate their own exclusive terminals, subject to restrictions and conditions of the City’s terminal accreditation body.
This, he said, would be similar to what bus companies are already doing in Metro Manila and in other parts of the country.
He cited the results of a study conducted by the University of the Philippines National Center for Transportation Studies Foundation.
The putting up of another terminal in the south to alleviate congestion in the existing bus terminal, and to accommodate mini-buses that use the streets as terminal. (LCR)
