PPA eyes 57M port passengers in December

The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said Thursday it is expecting a total of 57 million people to travel through various ports in the country this December.

At a public briefing, PPA spokesperson Eunice Samonte said that they recorded on December 18 more than 50,000 passengers—-the highest daily average of passengers this month.

“Nasa 57 million ‘yung inaasahan natin na pasahero ngayong December. ‘Yan ang ating forecast base sa ating data,” she said.

(We expect 57 million passengers this December. That's our forecast based on our data.)

“Inaasahan natin na madadagdagan pa ‘yan lalo po’t weekend pumapatak itong Pasko at ‘yung bisperas na [December] 24,” she added.

(We expect this number to increase even more, especially since Christmas Eve and Christmas fall on a weekend.)

So far, she said the situation in gateway ports in Manila North Harbor and Port of Batangas is orderly so far.

According to her, there are also no port closures, and all of them will be operating 24/7 especially during the holiday rush.

To ensure public safety, Samonte said around 3,000 force multipliers were deployed in various ports, and they are also coordinating with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

“Paalala po natin sa ating mga kababayan, bago pumunta ng pantalan, siguraduhin na meron na silang mga ticket na nai-book na bago sumakay para maiwasan ang mga delay dahil karaniwan ito ang nagiging cause of delay, ‘yung mga trans passenger natin,” she reminded.

(We’re reminding the public before they go to ports to make sure that they have tickets booked before boarding to avoid delays because trans passengers are usually the cause of delays.) — RSJ, GMA Integrated News