LTFRB moves validity of buses’ special permits

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Tuesday adjusted the validity of the special permits issued to bus operators in anticipation of the low pressure area (LPA) likely to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility a few days before Christmas.

In an advisory, LTFRB chairman Atty. Martin Delgra III and board members Atty. Aileen Lizada and Ronaldo Corpus said that special permits issued to public utility buses from December 23, 2017 to January 3, 2018 will be changed to December 21, 2017 to January 3, 2018.

Lizada said that this will give passengers an option to leave earlier for the Christmas holiday, ahead of the LPA's landfall.

In line with the influx of passengers this Christmas and New Year season, the LTFRB has received a total of 482 applications for special permits which will cover 1,144 units.

A total of 463 applications covering 1,055 units are up for approval while 10 applications covering 61 units are up for disapproval.

Bicol region has received 61 applications for 105 units, Visayas with 34 applications for 75 units, Mindanao with 8 applications for 13 units and Luzon which has the highest volume of applications of about 379 covering 951 units.

The LTFRB also advised drivers to "take precautionary measures during their trips and those bus units with destinations directly affected by the typhoon and will pass through a [roll-on roll-off] (RoRo) port are advised to cancel their trips and remain in their terminals until further notice."

Lizada said that they were briefed by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) that there will be a new tropical depression set to enter the PAR between December 20 and 21 that is set to make a landfall possibly in Visayas or Mindanao as a tropical storm between December 23 and 24.

The LTFRB, meanwhile, assured that they will monitor the new weather disturbance expected to enter the country in order to lessen stranded passengers all over the country. — MDM, GMA News