CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — The president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines in Misamis Oriental has asked the City Council to review the enforcement of a 20-year-old ordinance restricting provincial public utility vehicles (PUVs) from proceeding to the city proper.

Opol Mayor Jay Francis Bago, LMP Misamis Oriental president, appeared before the City Council on Wednesday to raise concerns over the policy’s impact on commuters from Opol and other parts of the province.

Bago said some commuters are forced to take as many as three rides to reach their destinations in Cagayan de Oro. He urged city officials to revisit the route scheme and consider measures that would make travel more convenient for provincial commuters.

Among those affected are students, government workers, patients seeking regular checkups and senior citizens who have to take several rides from the Bulua and Agora terminals to reach their destinations.

The issue centers on the city’s 2007 traffic route scheme, which requires provincial PUVs to use designated routes and terminals instead of proceeding directly into the city proper.

One case involves Igpit Liner jeepneys, which travel from Opol to Carmen in Cagayan de Oro.

Bago said the city cannot simply prevent the jeepneys from entering Carmen because the operator’s franchise issued by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board authorizes the route from Opol to Carmen.

He said Igpit Liner operators follow the route indicated in their franchises, noting that their authority to operate comes from a national government agency.