DOTr issues transpo guidelines for Aug. 6-20 NCR ECQ

Transport supply and capacity in the National Capital Region (NCR) will be retained even with the reimposition of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Tuesday.

The DOTr said the latest guidelines approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases allowed the continued operation of public transportation, but only authorized persons outside residence (APORs) will be accommodated.

“Restrictions will be applied on passengers. There will be stricter enforcement to ensure that only APORs are permitted to use public transport, as mandated by the IATF,” Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said in an emailed statement.

“APORs are reminded to be ready to present transport marshals identification cards issued by the IATF or other documents or IDs as proof that they are authorized to travel,” he added.

Metro Manila will be under general community quarantine “subject to heightened and additional restrictions” from July 31 to August 5, 2021.
This will be followed by ECQ, the strictest quarantine protocol, from August 6 to August 20, 2021.

Below are the guidelines for the upcoming ECQ:

• Roads

Public utility vehicles such as buses and jeepneys are allowed to operate at 50% capacity. Standing passengers are not allowed and only one passenger will be accommodated at the driver’s row.

Motorcycle taxi services and transport network vehicle services (TNVS) will be allowed.

Bicycles and electric scooters are allowed and encouraged, while tricycles will only be allowed one passenger.

• Railways

The Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 (LRT1 and LRT2) and the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 will continue operations during the ECQ, with health protocols strictly enforced by transport marshals.

Temperature checks will be conducted at station entrances, and passengers showing COVID-19 symptoms will not be allowed.

• Aviation and Maritime

Domestic flights and sea travel in the NCR will remain operational subject to the quarantine restrictions of the destinations.

“We are more adamant now, as we reinforce the government initiatives and measures to prevent the spread of the highly-transmissible Dela variant,” said Tugade. 

'Stricter' ECQ

Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año earlier in the day said the August 6-20 ECQ in NCR will be "stricter" compared to the previous ECQs.

“Mas mahigpit tayo ngayong ECQ na 'to. Ang tawag nga natin hard lockdown… Kung may makikita diyan [na violator], talagang aarestuhin ng ating mga pulis,” he told Unang Balita.

(The ECQ now will be stricter. We call it a hard lockdown. The police will arrest violators of health protocols.)

During the two-week ECQ, around 4 million vaccines are targeted to be administered in the NCR, according to Año.

The capacity of healthcare facilities such as intensive care units and isolation centers will also be enhanced to accommodate more COVID-19 patients.

Contract tracing and isolation of COVID-19 cases will be improved during the two-week hard lockdown.

—KBK, GMA News