Vallacar Transit
Vallacar Transit Incorporated (VTI) is a transportation service under the giant umbrella of the Yanson Group of Bus Companies (YGBC) which serves as its flagship subsidiary. The bus company is a family-owned and managed business that has grown from a lone 14-seater jeepney plying a single route called Ceres Liner, to a conglomerate of transportation companies with a combined number of operating units of 838 transport vehicles as of January 2010, operating and serving in the Visayas, as well as the Zamboanga Peninsula in Mindanao. The company pioneered inter-modal services between Negros and Cebu. History . Dr. Ricardo Y. Yanson, Sr. had a 14-seater jeepney that plied the routes in Bacolod City and nearby towns in 1968. Ricardo was fond of experimenting with motor vehicles and had a penchant for automotive body works. He tried his hands and skills in assembling more jeepneys while Olivia managed the warehouse and served as the collector of the daily “boundaries” from their drivers. His wife Olivia Villaflores Yanson (OVY) quit her nursing job at a rural health unit in Dumaguete to help her husband run the small business as ‘bodegera’ by day and ‘collector’ at night. Vallacar was  originally owned by the family of Ricardo. However, Vallacar grew because Ricardo was active then, buying second-hand trucks from Manila and rebuilding them as transport units for VTI. In the 1970s, the Yanson couple diversified into a small bus line which plied the Bacolod City-Valladolid-La Carlota route or Val-La-Car for short. It was named Ceres Liner, after Ricardo’s younger sister. Dr. Ricardo Yanson Sr. died at the age of 86, and left the leadership and management of Vallacar Transit, Incorporated and its conglomerate to the able leadership of his son Leo Rey Yanson (LRY ) with the guidance of his wife Olivia. A trail-blazer and visionary, self-made transportation tycoon Ricardo and his wife Olivia built an empire from one vehicle to a conglomerate of bus companies and the largest in the Philippines. Under Leo Rey Yanson's leadership. Vallacar Transit Inc. (VTI), the country’s largest bus company, recently held its annual stockholders meeting at its principal office in Barangay Mansilingan, Bacolod City. In the meeting, VTI disclosed that those reelected as members of its Board of Directors included Olivia V. Yanson, Leo Rey V. Yanson, Ginnette Y. Dumancas, Charles M. Dumancas, Anita  G. Chua, Arvin John V. Villaruel and Daniel Nicolas Golez. Following the election of directors, the board held an organizational meeting where Leo Rey Yanson was reappointed as chairman of the board and president of VTI, while VTI co-founder Olivia V. Yanson was reappointed as corporate secretary and treasurer. With firm grip of control to the family's Bus Conglomerate, Leo Rey Yanson, as president and chief executive officer of both Vallacar Transit Inc. (VTI) and Ceres Liner Travel and Tours Inc. (CLTTI), gave the assurance in a statement on Tuesday after presiding the latter’s annual stockholders meeting  at their principal office in Barangay Mansilingan here on Monday. Under Leo Rey Yanson's leadership, the Yanson Group of Bus Companies (YGBC) is currently composed of more than 4,800 buses, 18,000 employees providing public transportation to around 700,000 people daily in the Philippines. VTI Brands. Ceres Liner was the first branding under Vallacar Transit Incorporated which was named after the youngest sister of the founder, Ricardo Yanson Sr. As their operations expanded, several brands are added with different functions and area of operations. Bases. Their subsidiaries are sub-divided by bases. These are based on their area of their  operation, and their base number shall be the prefix number for their bus fleets. Yanson Group started this practice in 2005 after they bought out Lilian Express Inc., and felt that re-organizing their company is needed. There are four bases under Vallacar Transit Incorporated: Destinations. Since the re-organization of Yanson Group of Bus Companies in 2005, Rural Transit of Mindanao is sub-divided into bases in which has different areas of service and destinations. Bacolod Base. The Bacolod Base is located at Masilingan, Bacolod with its terminal hub at Ceres Bus Liner North Terminal, Mandalagan, Bacolod City and  at Bacolod City South Terminal, Luzuriaga St, Bacolod City. It is also the main base for Vallacar Transit Incorporated. The base is assigned as Base 5 of Yanson Group of Bus Companies. Their routes are from Bacolod City to the rest of the Negros Island Region, Cebu and Zamboanga City. From North branch From South branch Loop Service Iloilo Base. Iloilo Base is located at Jaro, Iloilo City with three terminal hubs at the new Ceres Terminal, Brgy. Balantang, Jaro, Iloilo City, Iloilo – Antique Bus Terminal at San Pedro St, Molo, Iloilo City and Festive Walk Transport Terminal, Iloilo Business  Park, Mandurriao, Iloilo City. The base is assigned as Base 6 of Yanson Group of Bus Companies. Their routes are from the cities of Iloilo and Roxas to the rest of Western Visayas. Northern lines: From Ceres Terminal, Jaro, Iloilo City Central lines: via Passi City (From Ceres Terminal, Jaro, Iloilo City) Central lines: From Festive Walk Transport Terminal, Iloilo Business Park, Mandurriao, Iloilo City Central lines: From Ungka Terminal, Pavia, Iloilo Antique lines: From San Pedro, Molo Terminal, Iloilo City Loop Service: Plying Roxas City-Estancia & V.V. Dumaguete Base. Dumaguete Base is located at Calindagan Road, Dumaguete City with  its own terminal hub at the same location. The base is assigned as Base 7 of Yanson Group of Bus Companies. Their routes are from Dumaguete City to the rest of the Negros Island Region, Cebu and Zamboanga City. Cebu Base. Cebu Base is located at Rizal Ave. Ext., Cebu City and Ouano Ave., Mandaue City with three terminal hubs at Cebu North Bus Terminal at SM City Cebu, Cebu South Bus Terminal at N. Bacalso Avenue of Cebu City, and the Ayala Malls Central Bloc terminal located in Cebu IT Park, Cebu City. The base is assigned as Base  8 of Yanson Group of Bus Companies. Their routes are from Cebu City to the rest of Metro Cebu, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga City. Northern lines: From Cebu North Bus Terminal, North Reclamation Area, Cebu City Southern lines: From Cebu South Bus Terminal, N. Bacalso Ave. Cebu City Central-Western lines: From Cebu South Bus Terminal, N. Bacalso Ave. Cebu City Metro Cebu Lines: Fleet. Vallacar Transit Incorporated has several units from Chinese brand buses. Some of their fleets are also provided by their parent company's coach building division, Vallacar Transit Incorporated – Transport Engineering  and Bus Body Assembly Plant (VTI-TEBBAP). Ordinary Fare Units. All ordinary buses are built in-house with the exception of a few King Long built units which are deployed in Bachelor Express, Island City Express, Rural Transit and Southern Star. Yanson Group of Bus Companies. These are the subsidiary companies under the parent Yanson Group of Bus Companies (YGBC) owned by the Yanson family of Negros Occidental as of 2016 operating in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao making it one of the biggest bus conglomerates in Southeast Asia. Vallacar Transit Incorporated (VTI) / Ceres Liner Travel and Tours, Inc. (CLTTI). Started  in 1968, Vallacar Transit Incorporated is the first subsidiary of the Yanson Group of Bus Companies. It started with Ceres Liner which is named after the founder's younger sister. By 1980, Ceres Liner was covering the whole province of Negros. The company was founded in 1968 by Ricardo B. Yanson (died October 25, 2015) and his wife, Olivia Villaflores Yanson, beginning with the purchase of one jeepney unit. This effort ultimately became a jeepney-assembly business. In the early 1970s, the market was flooded with Ford Fieras; the couple decided to diversify into a small bus line which plied  the Bacolod City-Valladolid-La Carlota route (hence, ValLaCar) and christened it as the Ceres Liner. The Ceres Liner grew and expanded through the years. Their service had reached from Negros to the Visayan provinces of Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan, Cebu, Bohol and Leyte, as well as Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga City in Mindanao. In 2007, Ceres Liner's Iloilo base pioneered travel between Iloilo City and Metro Manila through the Western Nautical Highway. Proving to be profitable, Yanson Group expanded its Metro Manila operations and later established Ceres Transport in 2009. In 2016, Ceres Liner bought around 70 bus  franchises from D' Rough Riders Express. It then formed a new brand as Sugbo Transit which is named after the old name of Cebu, Sugbo. Currently, the said branding is under the management of Ceres Liner's Cebu Base. On December 5, 2020, Vallacar Transit Inc. (VTI) reappoints Leo Rey Yanson as the chairman of the board and president during their firm’s annual stockholders meeting at its principal office in Barangay Mansilingan, Bacolod City. During their meeting, it was released that Olivia V. Yanson, Leo Rey V. Yanson, Ginnette Y. Dumancas, Charles M. Dumancas, Anita G. Chua, Arvin John  V. Villaruel and Daniel Nicolas Golez were re-elected as members of VTI’s Board of Directors. On January 5, 2021, CLTTI re-appointed Leo Rey V. Yanson as Chairman of the Board and President of CLTTI, while Olivia V. Yanson was re-appointed as CLTTI’s Corporate Secretary and Treasurer. Bus brands under VTI: Rural Transit of Mindanao Incorporated / Bachelor Express Incorporated. In 1981, the Yansons ventured to Mindanao. They bought out Fortune Express and Bachelor Express, both Cagayan de Oro-based bus companies in 1985, and formed Rural Transit of Mindanao. However, the formation of Rural Transit was  divided from Bachelor Express when the former owners of Bachelor and Yanson Group agreed to retain the name Bachelor Express as one of the conditions of the contract of sale. Bachelor Express then retained the name Bachelor Express In 2005, they bought out Lilian Express Inc. and sister company Mary May Express, its fiercest business rival, and became the dominant transit company in the island of Mindanao. This expanded their operations to the whole Western Mindanao, making Rural Transit as the predominant transport operator in the Mindanao Region. Bus Brands under Rural Transit Mindanao Incorporated / Bachelor Express Incorporated: Ceres Transport  Incorporated (CTI). In 2007, Ceres Liner's Iloilo base pioneered travel between Iloilo City and Metro Manila through the Western Nautical Highway. Proving to be profitable, Yanson Group expanded its Metro Manila operations and established Ceres Transport in 2009, being based in Batangas City. It enabled bus services encompassing Cubao, Batangas City, Mindoro, Aklan, Antique Iloilo, Bacolod and Dumaguete. Bus brand under this company Southern Star Bus Transit Incorporated. In 2011, the conglomerate bought out St. Jude Transportation Company, a bus line based in Bohol, and renamed it Southern Star. Primarily, it was operated under the management of Vallacar Transit  Incorporated. Later on, Southern Star formed its own subsidiary as Southern Star Bus Transit Incorporated. Bus brand under this company Gold Star Bus Transit Incorporated. In 2012, Ceres Transport Inc., bought out a franchise of Gold Star Bus Company and allowed it to operate its Batangas-Cubao and Batangas-Alabang routes. Later on, Yanson Group decided to create on its own subsidiary as Gold Star Bus Transit Incorporated, making it apart from the Ceres Transport Inc Bus brands under this company: Mindanao Star Bus Transport Incorporated. Mindanao Star started in January 2015 when Bachelor Express bought out Weena Express and  sister company People's Transport Corporation. It then formed a new subsidiary as Mindanao Star Bus Transport Incorporated, making them apart from the management of Bachelor Express. It opened opportunity for Yanson Group to serve the Davao City – Cotabato City route, which they cannot penetrate for decades. In October 2015 Mindanao Star bought Holiday Bus, the bus line of Davao Holiday Transport Services Inc., It made them to expand their operations for Davao City – General Santos City, and General Santos City – Koronadal City route. The stockholders of Mindanao Star Bus Transport, Inc., sister company of Vallacar Transit Inc., the  country’s largest bus transport company, re- appointed Leo Rey Yanson as president. Mindanao Star Bus Transport Inc. is part of the Yanson Group of Bus Companies which operate all throughout the Philippines including in the cities of Bacolod, Iloilo, Dumaguete, Cebu, Cagayan De Oro, Butuan, Davao, Pagadian, Dipolog, Bohol and Batangas. Bus brands under this company: