• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board in Western Visayas has been asked to schedule a dry run on the request of Ayala Malls Capitol Central to be included on the route of jeepneys plying Eroreco, Alijis, Homesite, and Fortune Towne in Bacolod City.
Councilor Al Victor Espino, chairperson of the Sangguniang Panlungsod Committee on Transport and Traffic, said there is a need for a dry run to determine actual feasibility, taking into account population density, transportation demand, and accessibility.
“It is of outmost importance that any new routes introduced align with the overall objectives of enhancing public transportation to give the public better commuting experience,” Espino explained in his resolution approved by the SP recently, adding the run through will “enable the evaluation of alternative routes to ensure flexibility and adaptability to changing circumstances”.
Mall manager Sharon Ciocon, in her letter to the city dated Sept. 20, 2023, requested for a permanent route extension for jeeps plying Eroreco, Alijis, Homesite, Fortune Towne, and Shopping La Salle to make the mall and nearby government offices, including the Provincial Capitol, more reachable via public transportation.
The Bacolod Traffic Authority Council, chaired by Mayor Alfredo Benitez, also approved in November the experimental plan of the Bacolod Traffic Authority Office involving modernized and traditional jeepneys of Eroreco, Homesite, Fortune Towne, Shopping-Lasalle, Alijis, and Punta Taytay to pass through the mall’s transport hub.
The air-conditioned jeepneys from barangays Tangub and Singcang-Airport started passing through the mall in January last year, in addition to modern and traditional jeepneys plying the Mandalagan-Libertad, Bata-Libertad, and Banago-Libertad routes. | CGC
