Bus operator pays Valenzuela City Hall nearly half-million-peso fine for overloading

The receipt given to the bus company and a photo taken inside one of their vehicles. Photo: Rex Gatchalian/FB
The receipt given to the bus company and a photo taken inside one of their vehicles. Photo: Rex Gatchalian/FB

A bus operator has paid almost half a million pesos to the Valenzuela City government after it was caught overloading passengers.

Mayor Rex Gatchalian posted a copy today of the receipt given to Metrolink Bus, which paid PHP462,000 (US$9,384) after the local government received photos that showed the lack of physical distancing inside its vehicle. Gatchalian threatened to jail the company’s driver after he received the damning images which he shared on social media on Sunday.

“This was taken yesterday afternoon, Malabon to Marilao route with stops in Dalandanan [in] Valenzuela. To the other bus operators don’t you dare try to do this or else you’ll suffer the same fate as Metrolink Bus,” he warned.

He added that he has the power to punish erring bus operators even if their permit was granted to them by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board.

Read: Seized gamecocks from Valenzuela City derby cooked into adobo by pissed city mayor

A follow-up post shared by Gatchalian yesterday showed the mayor speaking with Metrolink officials, who promised to remove some seats from their buses to comply with social distancing rules. The company also vowed to sanction its erring employees and agreed to pay the PHP462,000 fine.

It appears that the company has fulfilled its promise because Gatchalian shared a few photos today showing that there were a few seats missing from Metrolink’s buses.

Gatchalian has ordered other operators to ensure that social distancing is practiced in their vehicles, or else face the same fate as Metrolink.
“[T]omorrow I will talk to a jeepney operator in Polo which overloaded [passengers] too as shown by a pic sent by a constituent,” he said.

 



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