The Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Wednesday announced that the free rides to students will only be available at Light Rail Transit 2 (LRT 2).
"According to the Secretary (Jaime Bautista), the Libreng Sakay for Students Program will be for LRT-2 beginning start of next school year," the DOTr said in a statement.
It added that Bautista recommended to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to also extend the "Libreng Sakay" program for students on MRT-3 and PNR, but it has yet to be approved.
During his first full day as the Chief Executive, Marcos announced the extension of free rides at the EDSA Bus Carousel until December 2022 and free train rides for students from August 22 to November 4.
According to Transport Undersecretary Cesar Chavez, the President removed the MRT-3 and PNR from the program because the government will incur losses that can be used for rail maintenance.
"The President arrived at the decision to offer free rides for students just at the LRT-2. Based on our records, we lost P515.9 million from the three months of Libreng Sakay at MRT-3," Chavez said in an interview.
Meanwhile, the free rides for students next month will synchronize with the resumption of face-to-face classes this coming school year, as directed by Education Secretary and Vice President Sara Duterte.
