Gov. Eugenio Lacson of Negros Occidental has designated Provincial Administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz to sit down with the management of Vallacar Transit, the operator of Ceres Liner, to thresh out concerns regarding the opening of inter-regional trips.
In his interview over dyEZ, Lacson said that one thing that the province would like to understand is how the operator of Ceres Liner can ensure that all passengers will have a valid negative RT-PCR result, which is a requirement set by the provincial government for travelers outside of Western Visayas.
Lacson stressed that with the rise of COVID-19 cases in Manila & Cebu, the provincial government cannot afford to lower its guard against the deadly disease. He noted that at present most of the active cases in Negros Occidental are coming from the returning residents coming from outside the region.
Meanwhile, Vallacar Transit Public Relations Officer Jade Seballos reassured Capitol that safety measures will be in place should their request to extend their trips in Dumaguete, Cebu, and Zamboanga will be approved.
Part of the plan according to Seballos is to arrange a point-to-point trip, meaning no passengers will be allowed to board and disembark outside of the designated terminals.
Vallacar hopes that with all the safety measures that they have instituted they will be able to secure a no-objection endorsement from Capitol which will serve as support to their request to Land Transportation and Franchising Board for the issuance of special permit.
If all documentation is approved by this week, Seballos hopes that they can start their trips by next week, just in time for Holy Week.
Among the routes that Vallacar has applied for a special permit are trips to and from Bacolod-Dumaguete (via San Carlos City), Bacolod-Canlaon City (via San Carlos City), Bacolod-Cebu City (via Tabuelan), Bacolod-Zamboanga, and a new route Sipalay-Cebu City.
