THE Mandaue City Government has tapped the Ceres Bus Liner to ferry health workers to hospitals and health centers since public transportation was suspended after the city and the rest of Cebu Province were placed under a state of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) on Monday, March 30, 2020.
The 16 buses that will be deployed will also carry government employees and employees of essential establishments like groceries, banks and pharmacies, as well members of the public who need to go to these establishments.
Health workers and employees of exempted establishments will only need to present their company IDs, while residents making purchases will need to present their quarantine passes.
City Administrator Jamaal Calipayan said the ride is free.
The City has identified four routes:
The first route will ply from the North Road (Mandaue-Consolacion Boundary) via M.C. Briones St. (Hiway Seno) to Innodata (Mandaue-Cebu City Boundary) and vice versa.
The second route will ply from Foodland Banilad via A.S. Fortuna St. then to A.S. Fortuna Ext., to A. del Rosario to S.B. Cabahug St., right to A.C. Cortes then right to D.M. Cortes before making a straight to Ouano Ave. (Mandaue City Hospital), then right to W.O. Seno St. to Mantawi Drive passing UCMed and Chong Hua Hospital Mandaue, right to Ouano Ave., then right to Total Gas Station to M. Logarta St. passing through Subangdaku flyover then right to Hernan Cortes then left to A.S. Fortuna St. then back to Foodland.
The third route will ply from Barangay Cabancalan (Mandaue-Cebu City boundary), then to M.L. Quezon St. straight to A.C Cortes Ave. passing through the first bridge then a U-turn crossing the first bridge, then right to D.M. Cortes St., left to U.N. Ave., left to M.C. Briones St., right to ML. Quezon St., then back to Cabancalan.
The fourth route will ply from the second bridge (Lapu-Lapu side) to U.N. Ave., right to D.M. Cortes the U-turn to Cansaga Bridge, then right to U.N. Ave. and right to North Road, then to H. Abellana, then a U-turn to Tintay, then to D.S. Suico, left to P. Sanchez to the North Road straight to M.C. Briones, then left to U.N. Ave. and back to the second bridge.
The first trip will be at 5 a.m. with a 30-minute interval. The last trip will be at 11 p.m.
In Talisay City, the City Government will deploy seven L-300 vans, six buses and 45 tricycles to ferry residents during the ECQ.
Mayor Gerald Anthony Gullas Jr. posted on his Facebook page that the vehicles will travel on a one-hour interval.
Passengers will be required to present their quarantine passes and wear face masks. Only hand-carried loads will be allowed.
The ride is free.
Gullas also wrote on his post that the City will issue vehicle passes to those exempted from the ban to enter Cebu City from the south, such as people who require medical attention like dialysis and chemotherapy, among others.
Meanwhile, the Cebu City Government will add 20 more MyBus units to the 20 buses already plying the streets during the ECQ.
The buses operate for free from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. (KFD / JCT WITH A REPORT FROM JJL)