The Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) “Libreng Sakay” program will be expanded this week to help commuters who will be affected by the planned three-day transport strike.
Office of the Vice President's free shuttle service (OVP photo)
In a statement, the OVP said that the augmentation of its free shuttle service will include additional routes in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
“The OVP announced that it will dispatch its Libreng Sakay buses to seven different routes in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao during the duration of three-day strike,” the statement read.
Transport groups Manibela and Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) would march to Mendiola on Wednesday, Aug. 14, to protest the decision of President Marcos to reject the call of the Senate to suspend implementation of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).
The affected areas of the strike include Muñoz Market, Novaliches, Fairview, Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon Avenue, Balintawak, Cubao, and Projects 2 and 3 in Quezon City; Monumento, Bagong Silang, Camarin and Almar in Caloocan; Parañaque; Marikina; Pasig City; Bicutan in Taguig; Manila, Alabang, Muntinlupa and San Juan.
The OVP’s announcement that it will augment its free bus ride came amid its advisory that Vice President Sara Duterte will lead the launch of the PITX-Naic route of the program on Wednesday.
Duterte, along with Senator Christopher “Bong” Go will personally grace the event, which will be held at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) in Parañaque City on Wednesday, Aug. 14, at 4:30 p.m.
The new route will cater passengers starting from Naic and seven other nearby towns in the province of Cavite all the way to the central terminal in Parañaque City.
The Libreng Sakay program initially in Metro Manila, Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue, Bacolod, and Davao City aims to help alleviate the mobility concerns of thousands of Filipino commuters living in key cities of the country.
Since 2022, seven buses—one in Bacolod, Cebu, and Davao, and four in Metro Manila—have been offering the services.
According to the OVP, the program has already served 1,366,193 total passengers as of July 31. The buses are equipped with free WiFi, close-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, smart TV, and aircon.
In March this year, the OVP celebrated having served the one-millionth passenger of its Libreng Sakay program.
“Hiling ng OVP na marami pang Plilipino ang matulungan ng ating mga programa saanmang sulok ng bansa (The OVP wishes that the program can help more Filipinos from all over the country),” Duterte’s office said.