Batangas Port sees influx of returning Holy Week vacationers

Several travelers who spent the Holy Week break in the provinces have started to return home through the Batangas Port as they seek to avoid the influx of passengers during the last day of the extended weekend.

Bus operators at the port believed there were enough units to accommodate the incoming passengers, as they had already onboarded 3,000 to 4,000 passengers.

“Sa amin dito is ano ito, 250 units lahat, siguro masasapatan dahil marami pa naman naka-reserve. May mga backup pa, nandun pa sa garahe namin,” Bus Dispatcher Roger Tomas said in a report by GMA Regional TV Balitang Southern Tagalog's Paul Hernandez on GMA’s “24 Oras Weekend” on Sunday.

(We have 250 units here, which may be enough because we still have a lot reserved. We still have backups in our garage.)

So far, some 3,000 passengers traveled from Oriental Mindoro's Calapan Port, which has suspended its booking system for roll-on roll-off (ro-ro) ships and has since shifted to a first-come-first-served basis.

“Kasi anticipating the influx of both passengers and cargoes… Maiwasan ‘yung complaint ng delay na sila ay naabala sa paghihintay nila. Kaya po nag-aano kami ng lifting ng booking system,” Acting Terminal Supervisor Leonardo Villena said.

(In anticipation of the influx of both passengers and cargo… Also to avoid complaints of delays and of being inconvenienced by the long wait times, we are lifting the booking system.)

Malacañang announced that April 6 (Maundy Thursday) and April 7 (Good Friday) were regular holidays. It also announced the move of the Araw ng Kagitingan to April 10, making it a non-working holiday. — Jon Viktor Cabuenas/DVM, GMA Integrated News