LTFRB nod sought for temporary bus route to Davao
QUEZON, BUKIDNON—The lone company that operates buses plying the Cagayan de Oro City–Davao City route on Monday asked the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to authorize a temporary route following the collapse from a landslide of a section of the Bukidnon-Davao (Buda) road in Barangay Palacapao, here on Saturday.
According to Glynn Pedingula of Rural Transit Mindanao Inc. (RTMI), they wanted to deploy buses that take the so-called Talaingod route, which passes through Valencia City and San Fernando town in Bukidnon, Talaingod and Kapalong towns and Tagum City in Davao del Norte and on to Davao City, passing through Carmen town and Panabo City, also in Davao del Norte.
Currently, RTMI operates buses on that route, but not to Davao City as the end-destination, but to Mati City in Davao Oriental.
Pedingula said the Talaingod route conforms with the advisory of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
With a permit for the proposed temporary route pending, travelers to Davao City may opt to take the Talaingod route to Tagum City, and then transfer to another bus. If they are from Davao City, they have to travel to Tagum City and then take the bus to Cagayan de Oro from there.
Challenging commute
The biggest challenge for travelers is that there are not many bus trips plying the Cagayan de Oro-Mati or Mati-Cagayan de Oro route.
Hence, RTMI continues to operate the route via Buda. But passengers had to disembark and walk either downhill or uphill to a waiting bus to complete their trip.
RTMI had employed porters to assist the passengers with their luggage and cargo as they transfer to another bus unit.
But Pedingula said they are advising the elderly and persons with disability to take alternate routes.
Apart from the Talaingod route, bus travelers can also opt to take the bus bound for either Tacurong City in Sultan Kudarat or General Santos City, both of which pass through Bukidnon from Cagayan de Oro. They can then disembark at Kabacan town in Cotabato province and take the bus to Davao City from there.
Compared to the trip via Buda, the Talaingod route adds about 60 kilometers to the trip, while the Kabacan route adds some 90 km.
On Monday, the municipal government of Quezon said DPWH engineers have assessed the area and could be ready with work on opening a detour route along the Buda road.
Also on Monday, rescuers searching for a couple who went missing during Saturday’s landslide called off the operation at 3:30 p.m. when they observed ground movements.
Some 400 responders were doing shifts in the search operation, aided by K9 dogs and scanners. The rescuers include personnel from the Army, police, disaster response units from the Bukidnon provincial government and nearby municipal governments and firefighters.
