OVP deploys 5 buses under “Libreng Sakay” program – Manila Bulletin

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) on Wednesday (August 3) launched its “Libreng Sakay” program to help commuters in Manila and key cities in Visayas and Mindanao and decongest roads during rush hours.

The program is officially called “Peak Hours Augmentation Bus Service – Libreng Sakay”, which was launched simultaneously in Metro Manila, Davao City, Cebu and Bacolod.

Two buses will be deployed in Manila to run between the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) and Monumento from 4 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., peak times in Metro Manila.

“We hope that through this program, we can bring relief to some of our fellow Filipinos who depend on public transportation for their daily trips to work, school and many other places,” said the vice president. Sara Duterte during her speech. speech for the launch of the buses.

She shared that the buses were loaned to them during the campaign, so they decided to support the Ministry of Transport (DOTr) Libreng Sakay program by increasing their capacity.

The DOTr will also be the implementing partner agency of the OVP for this program. DOTr Secretary Jaime Bautista was present at the event.

Duterte stressed that the program “is a demonstration of effective collaboration between government and the private sector.”

“It will support the national government’s program, and at the same time, it is hoped that this meager contribution will translate into daily savings for our kababayans (companions) who use public transport,” she added.

Duterte expressed hope that the program will be just the start of “many more fruitful collaborations” with the private sector that is willing to share its resources with the public.

She said these collaborations are all the more important as the country is still reeling from the Covid-19 pandemic and the effects of the global economic crisis caused by the pandemic.

In a media interview after the launch, Duterte’s spokesman Reynold Munsayac said the OVP will pay for gas, repair and maintenance expenses for the buses.

The salaries of the drivers and guides will be borne by those who have lent the buses to the ÖVP.

Munsayac hopes that other private partners will be able to enter into a similar arrangement with the ÖVP.

“Papalawakin natin ito. Gusto natin maraming makikinabang. Mabigat ang pamasahe at maraming talagang (We are going to expand this. We want more to benefit from it. Transportation costs are a heavy burden and there are really a lot of commuters,” a- he declared.