Bus liner offers free rides from Tacloban to Ormoc and Biliran for 6 weeks
Visayas Liner is offering free rides from Tacloban City to Ormoc City and Biliran province for a period of 6 weeks as part of the government’s service contracting scheme.
The bus firm began offering free rides on the Tacloban-Ormoc and Tacloban-Naval (Biliran) routes on May 14 as part of its effort to assist passengers in light of the ongoing pandemic. Bus travelers can benefit from this free service until June 30, 2021.
Passengers traveling from here to Ormoc will save PHP 225 per ride, while those traveling to and from Naval will save PHP 262.
“We are joining the Land Transportation and Franchise Regulatory Board (LTFRB) in Region 8 (Eastern Visayas) in the government’s drive to help the community in the midst of the pandemic. Starting this week, health workers, front-liners, and authorized persons outside residence can ride Visayas Liner for free on our routes,” the company added in its statement.
The service contracting scheme helps PUV drivers to earn a consistent wage of PHP 11 per kilometer for jeepneys and PHP23.10 for passenger buses. On top of this, drivers can earn incentives depending on service quality, commuter feedback, and driver performance. Those that participate in the scheme must follow particular performance indicators in order to earn the subsidy.
The initiative, which has a budget of PHP 5.58 billion, was introduced in November 2020 as part of the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, or Bayanihan 2.
Visayas Liner is the second public transportation company to participate in the government’s free ride service contracting scheme. The first was Jeepko, a modern jeepney that ran between Tacloban and Tanauan. The company began offering free rides on May 3 and will continue to do so until June 30.
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Photo credit: Visayas Liner.
