00:00Metropolitan Manila Development Authority or MMDA is now ordering the passage of passenger buses
00:07to the provinces this holiday season.
00:10This is the story of Bernard Ferrer.
00:14At the behest of MMDA and the operators of the provincial buses,
00:18they allowed the buses to pass through EDSA
00:20due to the increased number of passengers this holiday season.
00:23According to MMDA Chairman Romando Don Artes,
00:26from December 20 to December 25, 2024 and January 3, 2025,
00:32the provincial buses will be allowed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
00:37while from December 26, 2024 to January 2, 2025,
00:41they will be allowed to pass through EDSA.
00:44Once January 4, 2025 is reached,
00:46the provincial buses will no longer be allowed to pass through EDSA.
00:49MMDA clarified that if the provincial buses come from the northern areas,
00:53they will only be allowed to pass through Kubao in Quezon City.
00:56If they come from the southern areas,
00:58they will be allowed to pass through PITX in Paranaque City
01:01and Terminals in Pasay City.
01:03This was appreciated by some bus operators.
01:06It's a good thing that we still have alternate routes
01:10aside from the one we're passing through now on the Skyway from Quezon Ave or C5
01:17plus this one from EDSA.
01:18For now, some trips to Bicol and Visayas are fully booked
01:22even though the walk-in service is still available.
01:24Some bus companies were forced to prepare
01:27to ensure the safety of the passengers.
01:29There was a drug testing,
01:31a random drug testing for the employees.
01:34The buses that we're using,
01:37we have to check them before we let them run.
01:39At the moment, there are 464,000 vehicles in EDSA
01:44and it is expected that the holiday season will increase.
01:47While the average speed of the vehicles is 18 kilometers per hour
01:51and it is expected that the traffic will decrease.
01:53Meanwhile, the Special Action and Intelligence Committee for Transportation or SAIC
01:58identified 16 vehicles that illegally passed through EDSA Busway Santolan.
02:02Bernard Ferrer for Pambansang TV in Bagong, Philippines.
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