I

i Tuesday, April2,2019

Free \fi-fi bill in transport

terminals soon to be law
Under the rules, SB 1749 will
"ln
pard(ular,
automatically lapse into law
iest stopJ are
even if the President does not
indispensable sign it 30 days after Malacaffang
forthose received the Congress-approved
tnveling by measure.
lan4 aithey Sen. Grace Poe, the bill's princi-
provide a bief pal sponsor, however, voiced hope
;

'pit stop'fol I

tnYelelrand
Duterte will promptly sign the I

bui driveEl remedial legislation into law in I

time to take effect when students

-Poe
BY BUTcq FERNANDEZ
t @butchfBM
N awaited bill mandating
free Wi-fi services in all
transport terminals is on its
way to becoming a law soon,
Embodied in Senate Bill 1749
which also mandates provision for
clean comfort rooms for commuters,
the measure passed by the Senate
and the House of Representatives
had been transmitted on March
21 to Malacaffang for President
Duterte to sign it into law.
The enrolled bill, entitled 'An
Act to lmprove Land Transporta-
tion Terminals, Stations, Stops,
Rest Areas and Roll-On/Roll-Off
Terminals," was adopted earlier
by the House of Representatives
without amendments, paving the
way for its speedy transmission to
the Office of the President to be
signed into law.
,go home to their provinceg during
their annual school break.
Moreover, Poe pointed out that
families traditionally also go on
snmdle? vacation traveling out of
town to visittourist spots and other
known recreational destinations.
As approved, SB 1749 requires
transportation and roll-on, roll-
off terminal to have clean rest-
room facilities, as well as free 1n-
ternet connections.
"The terminals must also have
s€parate lactating stations for
breastfeeding mothers," Poe added.
In a news statement, the sena-
tor stressed that "an efficient and
functional interprovince trans-
port system is essential to ensur-
ing that Filipinos travel safely."
She added: "In particular, rest
stops are indispensable for those
traveling by land" as they provide
a brief 'pit stop' for travelers and
bus drivers-"
Poe asserted that "this is espe-
cially important for Filipinos who
travel more than eight hours."

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