NCR commuters comply with face shield policy on first day of return to GCQ

Authorities strictly enforced the "no face mask, no face shield, no ride" policy on Wednesday, the first day of general community quarantine (GCQ) in Metro Manila.

According to Jonathan Andal's report on Unang Balita, security guards only allowed passengers with face masks and face shields to enter the LRT Monumento Station. For those who do not have them, a vendor at the station was offering face shields for P40.

Inside buses, though, it was noticed that some commuters took off their face shields once they got inside the vehicle.

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has made the wearing of face shield on top of face mask mandatory to commuters starting August 15 to lessen the chance of COVID-19 transmission.

On Monday, President Rodrigo Duterte announced that Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite and Laguna will return to GCQ from the stricter modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ).

Meanwhile, taxi driver Manuel Mendez brought some face shields with him to make sure that his passengers will comply with the DOTR order. He said he is willing to give them for free to those who do not have extra money.

Some motorists, however, were not aware of recent changes in the protocols.
Some motorcycle drivers with back riders who are staying at the same home still have their barrier installed even if the national government has already disallowed it.

Some passengers were also confused by the new paying system in buses, where they will have to purchase a reloadable card worth P150. Some passengers said they do not have enough money to avail of the card.

According to a separate report of James Agustin, buses along the Angat-Quezon Avenue route started trips early morning on Wednesday. In compliance to existing measures, the buses only accommodated a limited number of passengers to observe physical distancing.

Even if the restriction on movement was eased up in Metro Manila, only few commuters were observed on the road and most of them were just waiting for shuttle services from their companies.

Some workers still chose to go to work using their bicycles.

At MRT Taft Station, meanwhile, posters were posted to remind passengers of health protocols such as wearing face masks and face shields, according to Bam Alegre's report. Passengers were also asked to fill out contact tracing forms.

Inside the train, passengers are discouraged to talk or answer a phone call to avoid possible transmission of the coronavirus.

Augmentation buses were set up at the stations which only accommodate 50 percent of their passenger capacity.

Most of the train passengers also complied with the mandatory wearing of face shields. —Joviland Rita/KBK, GMA News