Ribbon Cutting Ceremony. (Left to Right) Representative of Coast Guard RADM Jose William U. Isaga Commander CGD Central Visayas - CPO Rolando Macapanas; President & CEO of Lite Shipping Corporation - Lucio E. Lim, Jr.; Mayor of Daanbantayan - Hon. Mayor Sun Shimura; Mayor of Bogo City - Hon. Mayor Carlo Jose A. Martinez; Governor of Province of Cebu - Hon. Governor Gwen Garcia; Philippine Port Authority General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago; Commercial Operations Head of Lite Shipping Corporation - Jethro Lim Imboy and Representative of Congresswoman Janice Salimbangon - Elibrado "Ely" SinangoteIn its 30th year, Lite Shipping Corporation, operating under the brand name “Lite Ferries” is establishing another milestone as it expands its connectivity to Luzon, particularly in Bicol from Cebu Island.
Labeled as “the most exciting pioneering gateway to the Province of Cebu” in recent years, Lite Ferries is at the forefront in connecting Bogo City, Cebu, and Matnog, Sorsogon in Luzon. This new alternative route will provide quicker connectivity from Luzon to Visayas and Mindanao islands and vice versa. It was officially launched and inaugurated on Saturday, July 31 at the Polambato Port in Bogo City.
It is to note that Maya Port in Daanbantayan will be an alternate port for the route depending on weather conditions due to changing monsoon seasons. The BOGO/MAYA to MATNOG route was established after the successful entry of Lite ferries in servicing the MATNOG, SORSOGON to ALLEN, SAMAR route upon the request of MARINA/ DOTR.
“This is a very important connection as this is the first time and the realization of our dream, it has always been our goal to connect Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao and to establish that newest gateway to Luzon from Cebu, with Maya in Daanbantayan as an alternative port,” Lim said in a sidelight interview with the media and bloggers during the event.
He bared that the route takes about nine hours and the RORO vessel can take in 20 vehicles and 400 passengers in sleeping accommodation. The plan is to deploy the biggest ship that would take 7.5 hours to travel from Cebu to Matnog and the company sees this as an important milestone and hub for Lite Shipping.
The launching/inauguration event was attended by Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia; Mayor Carlo Jose Martinez of Bogo City; Mayor Sun Shimura of Daanbantayan; representatives from the Philippine Coast Guard and Marina and PPA/DoTR representative Jay Daniel; Cebu Port Authority General Manager Mr. Leonilo Miole; CG RADM Jose William U. Isaga, Commander CGD Central Visayas; Lite Shipping Corporation COO Engr. Fernando Inting; Mr. Jethro Lim Imboy, Lite Shipping Corporation Commercial Operations Head; Cebu Provincial Board Member Hon. Kerrie Keane Gaudan Shimura together with the management and staff of Lite Shipping Corporation, headed by its President/CEO Lucio E. Lim, Jr.
The opening of the Bogo/Maya to Matnog route will be a big economic boost for both Cebu and Sorsogon Provinces, in terms of trade, commerce, and tourism.
With a travel time of only 9 hours, you can now travel direct, avoiding the hassle of the island hopping trips and no more waiting time. The new route offers the following advantages: lesser road usage, fuel-saving; lesser vehicle wear and tear maintenance, and most importantly, safety for drivers and passengers.
Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, in her message during the same event, said that there are so many islands in the country and the best and economical way of transporting goods and people is via ship travel.
Garcia thanked Lite Shipping founder Lucio Lim for putting up a route from Cebu to Luzon that will spill economic activity for the entire Cebu Island. She said that Lite shipping has shown the entire country that a Visayan can become a shipping magnate and are a viable economic player in the nautical highway program of this country.
Bogo City mayor Carlo Martinez said that the launching and inauguration of this route marks a special occasion here to establish Bogo City as the Gateway to Luzon. “This has been my father’s dream and now it has become a reality.
This route will open more business and commerce between Cebu, the Visayas, and the rest of Luzon. I hope this will bring economic impact to Bogo City and Daanbantayan and this is very advantageous to the LGUs in this part of Cebu,” Martinez added.
LITE FERRIES is a “hall of famer” for having been awarded as “the cleanest ship of the year” by the MARINA and the Bureau of Quarantine for many years. It has economy, standard, and tourist-class accommodations with above MARINA standards on passageways and bed bunk accommodation. All Lite Ferries vessels are fully compliant with COVID 19 safety protocols and guidelines.
With its fleet of 25 RORO passenger ships, Lite Ferries connects the Cebu island to the following provinces: Samar, Leyte, Bohol, Siquijor and Negros Island in the Visayas and in Northern Mindanao (Nasipit, Agusan del Norte, Cagayan de Oro City, Plaridel, Misamis Occidental, Dapitan / Dipolog City). With the Bogo to Matnog route, Lite Ferries is now linking Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
The MATNOG to BOGO/MAYA trip departs at 11:45 PM every Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; It departs from BOGO/MAYA to MATNOG at 11:45 PM every Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays The MATNOG to ALLEN and vice versa route have three(3) round trips daily with on-time departures. Matnog to Allen departs every 4AM / 10AM / 4PM while Allen to Matnog departs every 7AM / 1PM / 7PM.
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