Guidelines for Public Transportation for Areas under General Community Quarantine (GCQ)

April 29, 2020

LTFRB MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 2020-17

 

WHEREAS, in December 2019, the World Health Organization was alerted of several respiratory cases which were later on attribute to what is now known as the "Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19)";

WHEREAS, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed Proclamation No. 922 entitled "Declaring a State of Public Health Emergency Throughout the Philippines" on 08 March 2020;

WHEREAS, on 24 April 2020, Resolution No. 28, Series of 2020 was issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, and which was adopted and approved by President Rodrigo Duterte;

WHEREAS, under said Resolution, certain areas in the country have been identified to be placed under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) where public transportation may be allowed under limited number and reduced capacity to ensure social distancing per recommendation of Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), which category may change based on affected areas or period of effectivity of GCQ;

WHEREAS, in relation to the aforementioned and pursuant to the guidelines set forth by the DOTr, the Board, in the exercise of its power and functions to "promulgate rules and regulations governing proceedings before the Board and the Regional Franchising and Regulatory Offices; as provided under Section 5 (i) of Executive Order No. 202, deems it appropriate to set certain guidelines to be observed in the operation of Public Transportation in areas under GCQ;

NOW THEREFORE, for and in consideration of the foregoing, the Board hereby sets and adopts the following guidelines in areas under GCQ:

1. Public transportation shall be operating in a limited capacity. Social distancing and limited passenger capacity as well as required sanitary measures shall be strictly observed.

No transport employees and passengers belonging to the sector classified as immuno-compromised [such as but not limited to those 20 years old and below, senior citizens (over 60 years old) and/or those belonging to the vulnerable sector] shall not be allowed to report for work except when expressly exempted by proper authorities. (IATF Resolution No. 28, Series of 2020 dated April 23, 2020)

2. Operation of public transport shall be allowed only in routes identified and approved by the DOTr and/or the Board. To this end, the Central Office and all RFROS shall identify specific routes to be operational under the period of GCQ. The list of routes to be operational under GCQ areas shall be subsequently issued once determined.

To ensure the limited operations of public transport, local government units (LGUs) shall not be allowed to open routes within their jurisdiction without prior approval by the concerned RFRO and/or the Board. RFROs are directed to coordinate with the LGUs within their jurisdiction on this matter.

3. For operational routes under GCQ, buses of authorized public utility buses (PUBs) shall be the preferred units of transport service. In areas where PUBs could not operate, the following hierarchy of transport service shall be observed:

a. Tourist Bus

b. OFG-compliant PUJs

c. UV Express service

d. Traditional PUJs, which have already consolidated as cooperatives or are fleet-managed

e. Tourist vans

4. Passenger capacity shall be as follows:

a. BUS Passenger Limits: Passenger load shall not exceed 50% or half of the vehicle's capacity (excluding driver and conductor); passengers should be seated one seat apart; no standing passengers shall be allowed.

b. PUJ Passenger Limits (for OFG-compliant and traditional units): Passenger load shall not exceed 50% or half of the vehicle's capacity (excluding driver and conductor); passengers should be seated one seat apart; no standing passengers shall be allowed. The passenger seat beside the driver may be occupied by one (1) passenger provided that the driver compartment is sealed off by non-permeable transparent barrier and there is no conductor present during the trip.

c. UV Express Passenger Limits: Passenger load shall not exceed two (2) passengers per row, except for the driver's row for which there should only be one (1) passenger allowed to occupy the passenger seat, provided that the driver compartment is sealed off by non-permeable transparent barrier there is no conductor present during the trip.

d. To ensure that the limited passenger capacity is complied with, operators are required to adopt means or markings that will guide passengers as to which seats are available during the trips (such as non-permeable/acetate seat barrier and the like).

Other modes of public transport service (such as taxi, TNVS, shuttle service, tourist transport service, school transport service) may be allowed to operate on a case to case basis as the RFROs and/or the Board may determine. In case TNVS and Taxis shall be allowed to operate, strict physical distancing should be observed. Only a maximum at two (2) passengers shall be allowed at the back. Multiple bookings in a single trip (for TNVS) shall be prohibited. Further, cashless transactions or use of automated fare collection shall be implemented.

5. In order to be allowed to operate on the identified routes, operators are directed to secure the necessary Special Permit. Request for Special Permit shall be done through an online facility (such as via email) to be set up by the Central Office and the respective RFROs. Special Permits shall be free of charge for the duration of the GCQ.

Units subject of the Special Permit should comply with the following must:

a. Have a valid franchise/CPC be currently registered and with a valid/existing Personal Passenger Accident Insurance

b. Pass the Roadworthy Inspection to be conducted by the LTO

c. Be included among the authorized units owned by a juridical entity such as a cooperative or corporation

6. Those granted Special Permits shall be further subjected to the following conditions:

a. Drivers and conductors shall wear masks and gloves at all times;

b. Commuters are required to wear masks in order to be allowed to board a PUV (No Face Mask, No Ride);

c. If OFG Compliant units, preferably with AFCS facility in collecting the Fare;

d. For those without AFCS, PUJ drivers/conductors shall collect fares at the front seat before the passenger boards the PUV;

e. UV Express shall strictly follow the point to point operation and the fare shall be collected at their designated terminals. Thermal scanning of passengers shall be done at the terminal before boarding or start of the trip. Those with body temperature of 38 degrees centigrade or higher shall not be allowed to board the vehicle. Hence, commuters with fever are not advised to travel;

f. All BUSES must be equipped with thermal scanners while plying the route for the checking of body temperature to all passengers prior to boarding. Those with body temperature of 38 degrees centigrade or higher shall not be allowed to board the vehicle. Hence, commuters with fever are not advised to travel;

g. Vehicles shall be disinfected every end of each trip with all surfaces (especially seats, armrests, handles) wiped down with disinfecting agent;

h. All oftenly touched parts or surfaces of the vehicle such as but not limited to seats, armrests and handles shall be disinfected at least once every three (3) hours if the vehicle is in continuous operation;

i. Operators/Drivers should provide a foot-disinfectant or foot bath for passengers prior to boarding;

j. For PUJ & UV Express, the driver compartment should be sealed off from passenger area using non-permeable, transparent material. In such case, PUJ & UV Express may be allowed to take on one passenger on the driver's row.

k. Physical distancing must at all times be observed inside the PUVs. Thus, passenger load must not exceed 50% or half of the vehicle's capacity (excluding driver and conductor); passengers should be seated one seat apart; no standing passengers shall be allowed.

l. PUJ operators shall install impermeable barriers between rows of seats that are less than 1 meter apart if they wish to maximize 50% passenger load;

m. Operators/Drivers shall put a marking on the seats of the PUVs where the passengers must occupy;

n. All safety officers must regularly examine the drivers' and conductors' fitness to work by checking their body temperature and screening/detecting any symptoms of COVID-19. Should a driver or conductor show symptoms of COVID-19, he/she shall be prohibited to report to work and shall be subjected to quarantine immediately.

o. Operators must regularly check the availability of the thermal scanner in terminals and BUS units;

p. Operators/Drivers shall comply with all the IATF-EID resolutions in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic in order to prevent the spread of the virus.

7. For purposes of contact tracing:

a. All provincial buses and premium point-to-point (P2P) buses as well as UV Express shall have a passenger manifest taken at designated terminal prior to departure where the conductor can record pertinent information of the commuters who utilized the vehicle for contact tracing purposes;

b. To further enhance the contact tracing, passengers of PUVs, especially city bus, and PUJs, are required to take note of the plate number or body number of the PUV/s they rode, date and time they boarded the PUV, and the route they took; same shall be given to the PUV driver and/or conductor upon alighting the vehicle;

c. All PUVs shall display this reminder on contact tracing with the plate number/body number of the vehicle and contact number of operator prominently visible toy all passengers; and

d. Drivers, conductors, and all related personnel shall keep a log of their daily travel to and from work.

8. In the operation of PUV terminals, the following shall be observed:

a. All PUV terminals shall observe appropriate sanitary measures during the period of operations, especially in oftenly-touched surfaces (such as but not limited to waiting areas/passenger lounge, seats, counters, door knobs and the like). All terminal employees shall wear face masks at all times and be regularly subjected to medical check-up.

b. All PUV Terminals shall be provided with alcohol and hand washing facility (with water supply and soap) at the entrance for the free use of passengers.

c. Passengers are required to wear face masks and shall observe social distancing while within the terminal premises, failure of which shall result in their dental to enter terminals.

d. Passengers shell be required to undergo checking of body temperature. In case body temperature is 38 degrees centigrade or higher, they shall not be allowed entry and shall be referred to the nearest medical facility.

9. Fare matrix shall be displayed inside the units for the information of the passengers. Fare structure shall be on a per route basis and shall be indicated in the Special Permit to be issued under this Circular. Fare rate shall be based on the following:

 

Type of Service

Minimum Fare

Succeeding km

BUS	Non-Aircon	1st 5km	11.00	1.85
Aircon	13.00	2.20
PUJ	Traditional	1st 4km	9.00	1.50
Modernized (N/A)	11.00	1.50
Modernized (A/C)	11.00	1.80

UV	2.00 per km

 

10. ALL HOTLINE NUMBERS MUST BE PROPERLY DISPLAYED INSIDE THE PUVs AND TERMINAL PREMISES FOR THE INFORMATION OF THE PUBLIC

The guidelines set forth herein are consistent with issuances of the IATF on Emerging Infectious Diseases and the DOTr.

Deliberate failure to comply with any of the provisions herewith shall be construed as a violation to the terms and conditions of their CPC and shall be dealt with accordingly. The Board, its Regional Offices and authorized representatives shall strictly monitor the compliance of all PUV drivers, conductors and operators to this MC.

All issuances inconsistent herewith are hereby superseded and amended accordingly.

In view of the declaration of National Public Health Emergency under Proclamation No. 922, dated 8 March 2020, this Memorandum Circular shall be effective starting MAY 1, 2020. Let a certified copy of this Circular be posted in the LTFRB Official website and/or social media account and submitted as well to the Office of the National Administrative Register (UP Law Center) through [email protected]

SO ORDERED.

Adopted and Approved through teleconference

(SGD.) ATTY. MARTIN B. DELGRA IIIChairman

(SGD.) ENGR. RONALDO F. CORPUSBoard Member

(on Official Leave)P/MAJ. GEN. ANTONIO N. GARDIOLA JR. (Ret.)Board Member

Attested by:

(SGD.) COL. RENWICK K. RUTAQUIO (Ret.)OIC-Executive Director