The bus terminal in Bislig City now has a single official name. Under City Ordinance No. 2026-30, the public land transportation terminal in Barangay Poblacion is officially designated the "Bislig City Overland Transport Terminal," with the official acronym BCOTT.

The Sangguniang Panlungsod enacted the ordinance on September 15, 2026, during its 61st regular session. Mayor Florencio C. Garay approved it on September 29, 2026, and it took effect immediately upon approval. The ordinance was authored by Councilor Victor B. Alvar Jr. and sponsored by Councilors Florio S. Josafat Jr., Apolio C. Alvar, Jonas A. Cacayan and Eladio A. Galano, together with Vice Mayor Conrad C. Cejoco.

What changes

The ordinance has two main orders.

First, every department and office of the city government must use only the name "Bislig City Overland Transport Terminal (BCOTT)" in official records, public contracts, permits, licenses, maps, official correspondence and promotional materials.

Second, the City General Services Office, working with the City Engineering Office and the Bislig City Traffic Management Group, is tasked with making sure the terminal's main building signs, directional signboards and public markers carry the official name.

Once it took effect, the Sangguniang Panlungsod Secretariat was also directed to send copies of the ordinance to the Department of Transportation, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, the Land Transportation Office, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, for their guidance and adoption.

What does not change

The ordinance renames the facility. It does not change how the terminal is run. Section 6 says operation, management and control stay under the existing Bislig City Integrated Land Transport Terminal provisions of the city's Local Revenue Code. Nothing in the ordinance changes terminal fees, routes or schedules.

How the city came to own the terminal

The ordinance also records how the terminal came under city control. According to its text, the Provincial Government of Surigao del Sur and the City Government of Bislig signed a Deed of Gratuitous Conveyance covering the land and the terminal building. Under that deed, both sides agreed that management, operation and ownership of the building would pass to the city.

The ordinance describes the terminal as the main operational hub for public utility buses, vans and land transport operators serving the city and connecting provinces.

Why give it a formal name

The council's stated reasons are practical. The ordinance says a formal, uniform and legally recognized name is needed to build identity, streamline city administration, help the travelling public, and keep public records accurate. It says the name "Bislig City Overland Transport Terminal" reflects the facility's location, its administrative identity, and its role as a primary transport hub in Surigao del Sur.

The ordinance lists four policy goals: public safety and convenience for commuters and drivers, local economic development through a transport hub linking Bislig to nearby towns and provinces, better traffic management by centralizing land transport operations, and uniform record-keeping across government offices.

What commuters will notice

For most passengers, the immediate change is the name on signs and in official notices. If you see "BCOTT" in a city advisory, a permit, or on a signboard, it refers to the same Poblacion terminal.

The ordinance does not give a deadline for replacing the signs. Bislig Today will report when the new signage goes up.

Source: City of Bislig, Sangguniang Panlungsod Ordinance No. 2026-30 (enacted September 15, 2026; approved September 29, 2026), published on bislig.gov.ph.