Hundreds of passengers flocked various bus terminals after President Rodrigo Duterte’s announcement that the entire Metro Manila will be placed under ‘community quarantine’ starting on March 15.
“Land, domestic air, and domestic sea travel to and from Metro Manila shall be suspended from March 15, 2020 until April 14, 2020, subject to daily review of the IATF,” the President said reading the resolution filed by the inter-agency task force on Thursday.
Some passengers fear that they will be trapped in Metro Manila if they stay before the ban on domestic travels.
“Uuwi na kami kasi kuwan lockdown daw po. Kasi mata-trap kami dito mahirap walang tindahan may pasyente pa kami,” a passenger said.
The Provincial Bus Association of the Philippines said that 8,000 buses will be affected by the travel ban. They have 1 million to 1.2 million passengers daily.
The group is also considering to pull out their units in Metro Manila should the ban takes effect.
“Lahat ng biyahe na manggaling probinsya na papasok ng Manila, for the meantime susunod kami dun sa directive ng Presidente, wala munang biyahe papasok ng Maynila,” the group said.
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