CEBU, Philippines – Netizens have found a creative way to circumvent the ‘No Standing Policy’ being strictly imposed in buses.
The start of the New Year in 2019 was met with an announcement that the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Central Visayas will be strictly imposing the ‘No Standing Policy’. This means that buses will not be allowed to have standing passengers to prevent overloading.
Rey Elnar of LTFRB 7 revealed that the policy had actually been in place since 2005. The policy covers provincial buses, but city buses and airport buses are exempted from the ban because they ply shorter routes and don’t usually go as fast as provincial buses.
According to the LTFRB, operators of public utility buses caught accommodating standing passengers will face fines of Php5,000 for the first offense. For the second and third offense, the operators will be asked to pay a fine of Php10,000 and Php15,000, respectively.
Aside from the fines, the franchise will be suspended for 30 days for those that violate the policy for the third time.
But it is a reality in the Philippines that most buses actually accommodate standing passengers, mostly because there are just too many passengers compared with available buses. This especially holds true during rush hour and during peaks season, such as Christmas holidays and the Holy Week.
On Friday, January 4, Facebook user Lyndon Placencia was on his way to his hometown in Bantayan Island, located some 132km north of Cebu City.
The bus was already full by the time the bus was scheduled to leave the Cebu North Bus Terminal at 9:30 PM but many passengers still wanted to get on the bus. Because the next trip would be at midnight, many of the passengers could no longer wait.
Despite the possibility of facing fines if caught, the bus conductor took pity on the passengers and allowed them to ride. The passengers would later decide to sleep on the floor, not just because they were tired but as ‘solution’ to the ‘No Standing Policy’.
UPDATE: LTFRB releases results of probe on viral photo of bus with passengers sleeping on floor
Surely, the LTFRB will not fine this bus operator because the passengers were actually sleeping and lying down, not standing at the aisle, right?
— Joy Adalia, The Summit Express
The start of the New Year in 2019 was met with an announcement that the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Central Visayas will be strictly imposing the ‘No Standing Policy’. This means that buses will not be allowed to have standing passengers to prevent overloading.
Rey Elnar of LTFRB 7 revealed that the policy had actually been in place since 2005. The policy covers provincial buses, but city buses and airport buses are exempted from the ban because they ply shorter routes and don’t usually go as fast as provincial buses.
According to the LTFRB, operators of public utility buses caught accommodating standing passengers will face fines of Php5,000 for the first offense. For the second and third offense, the operators will be asked to pay a fine of Php10,000 and Php15,000, respectively.
Aside from the fines, the franchise will be suspended for 30 days for those that violate the policy for the third time.
But it is a reality in the Philippines that most buses actually accommodate standing passengers, mostly because there are just too many passengers compared with available buses. This especially holds true during rush hour and during peaks season, such as Christmas holidays and the Holy Week.
On Friday, January 4, Facebook user Lyndon Placencia was on his way to his hometown in Bantayan Island, located some 132km north of Cebu City.
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| Photo credit: Facebook / Lyndon Placencia |
The bus was already full by the time the bus was scheduled to leave the Cebu North Bus Terminal at 9:30 PM but many passengers still wanted to get on the bus. Because the next trip would be at midnight, many of the passengers could no longer wait.
Despite the possibility of facing fines if caught, the bus conductor took pity on the passengers and allowed them to ride. The passengers would later decide to sleep on the floor, not just because they were tired but as ‘solution’ to the ‘No Standing Policy’.
UPDATE: LTFRB releases results of probe on viral photo of bus with passengers sleeping on floor
Surely, the LTFRB will not fine this bus operator because the passengers were actually sleeping and lying down, not standing at the aisle, right?
— Joy Adalia, The Summit Express
