CEBU City Mayor Nestor Archival announced that the city’s free night shuttle service will operate from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., targeting employees working graveyard shifts.
Archival said the schedule was considered to avoid disrupting the existing jeepney operations, adding that the deployment will be calibrated accordingly, with one bus each for the north and south routes.
“This will start with one or two buses. One bus sa north, one bus sa south,” Archival said in an interview on Saturday, July 6, 2025, during a pilot waste segregation project in Barangay Luz.
Archival added that the shuttle targets employees working during graveyard shifts, especially those in the Business Process Outsourcing- Information Technology (BPO-IT) sector.
“The schedule will start about nine o’clock until padung sa alas 5 sa buntag aron dili sad ta makadiskaril sa mga sakyanan nga public utility vehicles, jeepney nga naa say musakay nila,” he said.
He said the program is part of the City’s efforts to protect workers who are vulnerable to petty crimes during late-night commutes.
“There are so many reports during graveyard hours -- pagsakay, kuot, hold-up,” he said.
“This will make them feel nga giatiman sila sa City Government,” he added.
Archival also said the initiative was inspired by the “Mayor of the Night” program conceptualized under Vice Mayor Tomas Osmeña.
The “Mayor of the Night” aims to support the estimated 250,000 BPO-IT workers in Cebu, whose contributions are vital to the city’s economy.
The move came following the Cebu City Council’s approval of a resolution on June 26, 2024, authored by Archival, calling for the revival of the city’s free bus rides for employees working between midnight and 6 a.m.
The resolution cited a Philippine Information Agency report that Cebu has the highest number of BPO-IT employees in the Visayas.
The initial routes will include:
I.T. Park to Metro Colon and vice versa
Barangay Talamban to Cebu Business Park
Uptown stops at JY Square, Capitol, Fuente Osmeña, Harrison Park, and Abellana National School
Northern District stops at F. Cabahug Street, Hipodromo Road, T. Padilla, Mabolo Church, and S. Osmeña Blvd.
Cebu City first launched the free night bus service in 2018, but it was discontinued following a change in administration. (CDF)