Vendors relocated from bus terminal ahead of holidays

FOOD vendors were relocated to 14 concrete stalls built beside the Cebu North Bus Terminal (CNBT)’s fence ahead of the Oct. 28 barangay elections and the All Saints Day holiday.

Cebu City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said they expect a huge turnout of passengers in these two events. The terminal is located in Mandaue City but is leased by the Cebu City government.

“We have to expand the area because it’s already filled up,” CNBT manager Zosimo Jumao-as said.

Poblete said they commissioned a contractor to do a study on short and long-term improvement projects in the terminal.

He said the existing terminal could hardly accommodate the influx of passengers and vehicles especially during the holidays.

Poblete said the removal of makeshift food and pasalubong stalls from the terminal lobby will give more space to passengers. The stalls were sponsored by Pepsi.

Poblete said he will convene members of the terminal management board anytime to put into place their preparations for the passengers heading to their respective towns in Cebu for the All Saints and All Souls Day holidays.

He said the crowd won’t be as big this year because a lot of passengers will go home to their provinces earlier in order to vote in the Oct. 28 election.

Cebu City traffic enforcers were given anti-flu vaccines last Friday to prepare them for heavy work during the upcoming holidays and the Sinulog celebration in January.

“Having healthier enforcers mean that they are always available to work,” said Rafael Yap, executive director of the Cebu City Integrated Traffic Operations Management (Citom) office.

About 116 of the city’s 278 Citom enforcers got their anti-flu vaccines from personnel of the City Health Department at the Citom office.

The 162 others will get their flu shots as soon as the vaccines are available at the CHD.

“We are doing this to prepare them for the peak season.  We will soon be having the kalag-kalag and the Christmas holidays.  There is also the city’s night market, the Sinulog celebration and even the Charter Day celebration in February,” he said. Correspondent Edison delos Angeles and Chief of Reporters Doris C. Bongcac