CCLEX to welcome public utility vehicles soon

MANILA, Philippines — The Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) aims to commence the operation of public utility vehicles (PUVs) within this year, enabling convenient transportation between the island and city sides of Cebu.

Documents obtained by The STAR showed that the Office of the Sangguniang Bayan in Cordova, Cebu, has asked the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to approve PUV routes for CCLEX.

In a resolution, the office said that PUV routes at CCLEX should be opened to give commuters a viable alternative for traveling between Mactan Island and Cebu City without going through the usual traffic in the toll-free bridges.

“The public transport commuters are deprived from using CCLEX as their alternative route since only private vehicle owners have been benefitting from the CCLEX. The council felt the need to open new PUV routes [in CCLEX] as it will provide alternative routes to public commuters, ease traffic congestion and likewise help the economy,” the resolution read.

CCLEX Corp. (CCLEC) president and general manager Allan Alfon expects the LTFRB to approve the CCLEX routes within 2023. Afterward, CCLEC will sign joint venture contracts with bus and jeepney operators for the use of the bridge.

“If LTFRB approves it, then we can start preparing joint venture agreements with certain bus and jeepney operators,” Alfon said in an interview with The STAR.

The Metro Pacific Group also plans to deploy modern jeepneys in Cebu through Byahe, one of its subsidiaries in the transport sector.

Under the plan, Byahe will bring a number of units to Cebu to ply the PUV routes that will pass through CCLEX.

Byahe operates modern jeepneys in Metro Manila, Nueva Ecija, and Pampanga, with plans to invest over P1.5 billion to achieve its target of owning 530 units by 2027.

Last year the LTFRB in Central Visayas proposed the opening of three PUV routes that will bridge transportation gap between Cebu’s island and city areas through CCLEX. In particular, the agency wants to launch PUV services between Naga City and Mactan-Cebu International Airport; Lapu-Lapu City and Fuente Osmeña; and Cordova and SM Seaside City Cebu.

The LTFRB is asking for 20 units for the first route, 20 units for the second route and 30 units for the third route, as it hopes to open another transport option for commuters going around Cebu.

The CCLEX, the architectural pride of the Metro Pacific Group, is a cable-stayed bridge linking Mactan Island and Cebu City.