Prayer for travel travails

For our largely Catholic country, the long weekend that ended our Lenten observance has always been associated with the holiday travel rush. Droves of individuals and families going on out-of-town trips literally clogged traffic. The gridlock is not only experienced on the roads but is also replicated in seaports and airports in Metro Manila and across the Philippines.

“All hands on deck,” Department of Transportation (DOTr) “acting” Secretary Vivencio “Vince” Dizon was quoted as telling all heads of attached agencies of the government as well as the private transport-related sectors nationwide. Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Vigor Mendoza II, Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) official spokesperson Eunice Samonte, Jason Salvador, official spokesman of Megawide’s Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) cited this marching order issued by Dizon.

As the DOTr secretary, Dizon is the immediate supervisor of both the LTO and PPA, while the PITX is a land port terminal project under the DOTr partnership with Megawide Terminals Inc. Appointed just last February, Dizon started cracking the whip at all DOTr-attached agencies to prepare for the usual Holy Week travel binge of Filipinos. Mendoza, Samonte and Salvador chorused having received this strict guidance during the ocular inspections done by the DOTr secretary days before and at the start of the Holy Week season last Monday.

At our weekly news forum Kapihan sa Manila Bay last week which coincided with Holy Wednesday, Salvador noted queues of passengers started forming as early as 5 a.m. at the PITX. This is at the second floor of the nine-story PITX complex that houses ticket booths for buses heading south towards Bicol, the Visayas and Mindanao.

Salvador cited PITX sees such seasonal surges in volume of foot traffic of passengers eager to travel to their home provinces using the modern conveniences of its land port terminal facility. And most especially, he added, passengers can expect safer and protected long hours of land travel because LTO and police personnel check all public conveyances such as buses, jeepneys, motorcycle taxis and TNVs passing through their facility.

While inspecting the PITX, Salvador noticed the DOTr secretary first went to check the comfort rooms around the terminal and suggested they add more toilets. Salvador shared the concern of Dizon, citing the average of 15,000 to 20,000 “foot traffic” at the PITX on regular days. From the PITX, Dizon proceeded to provincial bus terminals along EDSA and found to his dismay illegal, hole-in-the-wall operations along Pasay City.

Upon seeing the decrepit situation of passengers waiting under the heat of the sun and without any basic amenities, the DOTr secretary could only wish aloud for the putting up of more PITX-like land port terminals. One of these, the latest Megawide-built land port terminal called the Bus Rapid Transport from Cavite connecting all the way to the PITX (in Parañaque City), will become operational later this year, Salvador announced.

Speaking for PPA administrator Jay Santiago, Samonte said their agency is bracing for an estimated influx of over 1.7 million passengers this Holy Week. According to her, the PPA passenger volume is expected to rise by 3.5 percent compared to last year, increasing from 1.67 million in 2024 to an estimated 1.73 million this year.

Samonte told us Santiago accompanied Dizon at a joint inspection of the Manila North Port Passenger Terminal last April 14. As expected, sea passenger traffic peaked at an average of more than 2,000 passengers per day last Holy Week.

Samonte reassured the public every PPA-run port provides facilities such as air-conditioned rooms for seniors, persons with disabilities, pregnant women and children, along with water refilling stations and mobile charging areas. To further improve the sea travel experience of passengers, Samonte reaffirmed the commitment of the PPA to finally rollout later this year the implementation of the online ticketing system for all domestic shipping companies passing through all its seaports.

“Secretary Dizon expressed his concern over the delayed implementation, emphasizing that safety and convenience must be prioritized,” Samonte disclosed.

On the part of the LTO, Mendoza instructed all LTO regional directors and enforcement heads to actively respond to public complaints and monitor social media for violations. Mendoza has mobilized more than 1,700 LTO traffic enforcers across the country to monitor major roads and take action against reckless driving, including road racing, as increased vehicular traffic is expected during the Holy Week break.

The deployment of additional LTO enforcers as force multipliers to local government traffic aides aims to enhance road safety during the peak travel season, Mendoza cited. The LTO is also working closely with the Philippine National Police (PNP) to immediately apprehend reckless drivers and impound their vehicles.

“All our enforcers are deployed in major thoroughfares to at least serve as a deterrent against reckless driving. This is part of the instruction of our DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon since the presence alone of uniformed LTO personnel will compel errant drivers to behave,” Mendoza told us.

He disclosed the LTO issues at least two show-cause orders weekly to errant motorists based on verified reports.

To strengthen enforcement, the LTO has introduced mechanisms to ensure greater accountability for traffic violations. Mendoza reiterated that holding a driver’s license is a privilege, not a right. Thus, he explained, the LTO immediately acts on all reported violations without compromising due process. Mendoza encouraged netizens to report dangerous driving they encounter on the road. He assures the public all tips would be handled confidentially by a dedicated LTO social media monitoring team.

Mendoza encourages the public to report violations through its “AksyON THE SPOT” hotline at 0929-292-0865. Of late, the LTO chief echoed the concern of the President over the rising number of “road rage” incidents. A former legislator before he became LTO chief in 2022, Mendoza is mulling to ask Congress to legislate a special law to criminalize anger-driven violent acts on the roads.

For now, the LTO chief advises motorists to avoid road rage by saying a prayer.

The travails of travels during the holiday rush could really test the patience and one’s state of mind.