By Alexandria San Juan

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) held a dialogue with bus operators over the week as it geared up for the upcoming 30th Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) that will be hosted by the Philippines beginning November 30.

Athletics Stadium in New Clark City, Capas, Tarlac (MB photo |Rio Deluvio)

According to the agency, plans and preparations for the sporting event were discussed during the meeting attended by different stakeholders at the LTFRB Central Office on Monday.

Present during the dialogue with the operators were Department of Transportation (DOTr) Assistant Secretary Alberto Suansing, LTFRB Member Ronaldo Corpus, LTFRB Information Systems Management Division chief Nida Quibic, and LTFRB Technical Division director Joel Bolano, who led the discussion.

Tackled during the initial part of the meeting was the provision of buses for the opening ceremony of the SEA Games on November 30 to be held at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

Bolano said DOTr, as well as LTFRB, had agreed to designate two pick-up points for buses which will be at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) and at the Trinoma Mall in Quezon City.

The LTFRB recently opened the application for special permits for point-to-point (P2P) buses which may want to service the routes leading to the venues of the sporting event.

Once approved, the special permit will be valid during the SEA Games slated November 30 to December 11, the LTFRB said.

Also discussed during the dialogue was the formation of a consortium of all city buses under a single fleet management system as requested by DOTr.

The agency tasked bus operators to create and submit initial plans for the consortium prior to a meeting set in the first week of December before its presentation in Malacañang as a component of the PUV Modernization Program.

In an earlier interview, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said it is ready to accept the at least 17,000 athletes, dignitaries, and officials from various nations for this year’s SEA Games.

The 2019 SEA Games, which will be hosted by the Philippines, will be held at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium in Capas, Tarlac and other venues in Subic and Metro Manila from November 30 to December 11.

Tags: #SEAGames2019 , 30TH SEA GAMES , 30th Southeast Asian Games , SEA Games , Southeast Asian Games