GOVERNOR Ralph DLG Torres on Thursday proclaimed July as CNMI Public Transportation Month.
He also recognized the Commonwealth Office of Transit Authority for stepping up to take care of passengers, especially amid disasters, including the Covid-19 pandemic.
“As I’ve said in the past, all of you guys really stepped up, took care of our passengers, took care of our folks,” he said.
Special Assistant for Public Transportation Alfreda Camacho Maratita, for her part, said in her brief remarks, “Whether or not you see it, public transportation is the backbone of moving our community.”
Established by CNMI Public Law 17-43 on May 27, 2011, COTA aims to provide a public transportation system in the Commonwealth to answer “the growing need of access to public transportation in the CNMI and to take on a leading role in promoting and enhancing public transportation for our community.”
COTA also aims to provide the members of the CNMI community with a dependable, reliable, safe and cost-effective public transit system in order to reduce energy consumption, strengthen cultural values, and contribute to the economic development of the Commonwealth.
“Public transportation must always be regarded as the link, and never the barrier, to accessing training, employment, childcare, and related destination in the CNMI,” the proclamation reads.
Torres called upon the people of the CNMI to celebrate and promote COTA, and encouraged greater participation among the islands’ diverse communities through the utilization of COTA’s resources as their primary or alternative mode of transportation within the Commonwealth.
The CNMI is also observing July 11-16 as National Rural Transit Week.
On Thursday, Gov. Ralph DLG Torres, Special Assistant for Public Transportation Alfreda Camacho Maratita, the Commonwealth Office of Transit Authority, cabinet officials, local dignitaries and local partners proclaimed the month of July as CNMI Public Transportation Month. The CNMI is also observing July 11-16 as National Rural Transit Week.
