Tacloban bans transport vehicles in city proper

TACLOBAN CITY — The Tacloban city government will now ban the entry of all public transport vehicles to the city proper.

TRANSPORT BAN Transport vehicles that ply the Tacloban City-Palo, Leyte routes will no longer be allowed to enter the city proper effective May 19, 2025, on an ordinance passed by the city government in compliance with the transport modernization law. PHOTO BY NESTOR L. ABREMATEA

Isabelo Lagutan, spokesman of the Traffic Operations Management Enforcement Office (Tomeo), said the ban on the entry of all public transport vehicles is based on a city ordinance.

Lagutan said all transport vehicles are prohibited to enter the city proper to the downtown area and will instead unload their passengers in a private terminal in a mall in Barangay Marasbaras, Tacloban City, and they will take another ride to the city proper.

He said the ban is part of the city's compliance to the transport modernization law that mandates local government units to formulate a local public transport plan.

Lagutan said the ordinance was authored by a city councilor who lost in the May 12 elections while also getting the ire of tricycle drivers and operators for increasing the penalty to P1,000.

He said they will be apprehending the violators if they try to continue to enter the city and impose fines.

Greatly affected by the ban are the thousands of students studying in various state universities and colleges as well as government and private employers and workers from outside Tacloban City, who commute daily from various Leyte municipalities, Lagutan admitted.

Palo, Leyte Mayor Remedios "Matin" Petilla said their traffic enforcers will not apprehend public transport vehicles entering their town.

Petilla, president of the League of the Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Leyte chapter, said they will not be giving burden to the traveling public.Palo is a vital gateway to Eastern Visayas and to Luzon and Min-danao.