Naga prepares for buses’ inter-regional ops
The Naga City government here is preparing for the resumption of inter-regional operation of public utility buses plying the Manila-Naga route with emphasis on strict observance of the minimum health standards when they resume operations several weeks from now.
In a recent meeting of the city’s Health Emergency Response Task Force (HERTF), Mayor Nelson Legacion said that what should also be given consideration in the resumption of operations of provincial buses is the protocols for the locally stranded individuals and overseas Filipino workers upon departure from Manila and when they arrive in the city.

BUS TRIP RESUMPTION. Bicol Central Station (BCS) Operations Manager Roderick Reforsado (right) talks with Dawn Jimenez of Naga’s City Events, Protocol and Public Information Office about the preparations being undertaken by the BCS on the planned resumption of inter-regional operations of provincial buses nationwide. JBN/VICVILLAFLOR/CEPPIO
The reopening of inter-regional routes was already endorsed by the local Land Transportation Regulatory and Franchising Board here to its central office. LTFRB Memorandum Circular No. 2020-051 provides that “resumption of operations for provincial buses on routes touching/centering Metro Manila be implemented upon approval of the concerned local government units and coordination with the Inter Agency Task Force.”
The city’s HERTF is pushing the idea of allowing only six public utility buses that will transport a maximum of 144 passengers from Manila to the city every day.
It is also studying the proposal to implement strictly the “no passing through” policy where in all buses permitted to transport passengers to Naga will not accept passengers with different destinations aside from the city.
“The policy aims to limit the spread of coronavirus disease in Naga by prohibiting buses from entering the Bicol Central Station when they still have to proceed to other places after Naga City to transport passengers,” said Roderick Reforsado, operations manager of Bicol Central Station.