Biyahe ng P2P bus madagdagan pa, ibabalik na ang serbisyo sa gabi

SIMULA sa Lunes, may opsyon na ang mga pasahero sa Edsa sa harap naman ng nakatakdang pagbiyahe ng point-to-point (P2P) bus service hindi lamang sa umaga, kundi maging sa gabi.
Sinabi ng Department of Transportation (DOTr) at ng Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board na nangako ang mga city at provincial bus operators na maglalaan sila ng 60 bus bilang P2Ps, na inilalaan para sa mga mananakay ng MRT 3 na nais makaiwas sa napakahabang pila sa MRT3.
“At present, transport officials count on the operators’ participation in the P2P project on a voluntary basis. Such an arrangement limits the number of passengers that can be accommodated. By guaranteeing the deployment of 60 P2P buses, at least 3,360 passengers can be assured that they could get to their destination conveniently and on time,” sabi ni TJ Batan, transport undersecretary for rails.
Itutuloy ng mga P2P bus na magsakay ng mga pasahero ng MRT sa North Avenue station at Quezon Avenue station tuwing umaga ng rush hour. Simula Lunes, aatasan naman ang lahat ng 60 bus na magkaroon ng ikalawang biyahe para mas maraming pasahero ang mapagsilbihan.
“For a faster turnaround, the buses will have to leave for Quezon City even if they are empty,” ayon pa kay Batan.
“To compensate the bus operators, the government will allow their buses to ply their regular routes once the morning bus service has ended, even if these buses are banned on the road under the number coding scheme. The units will be given proper signage to avoid being flagged down by traffic enforcers,” sabi pa ni Batan.
Idinagdag ni Batan na maghihintay ang mga bus sa mga pasahero ng MRT sa Taft Avenue station at Ayala Avenue station.
“Due to lack of space at Taft, they are looking at Macapagal Avenue as a possible staging area. At Ayala, the loading area will be the current bus stop along Edsa,” sabi ni Batan.
Sinabi ni Batan na ibaba ang mga pasahero sa Shaw Boulevard, Cubao at North Avenue.
Mananatili ang pasahe sa P15.
“Since the provincial buses which will participate in the project could not ply their routes for the day, the DOTr will have to subsidize their operations at P9 per passenger. This means that for each trip of a 45-seater provincial bus, for example, the government will have to shell out P405,” paliwanag pa ni Batan.
Ani Batan, sasagutin ng MRT ang magiging gastos sa proyekto.
“Depending on the upgrade of the trains in the coming weeks and the demand for P2Ps, the service will remain in effect until April,” sabi pa ni Batan.