Ferry compensates for poor traffic through Davao’s port

DAVAO CITY, Philippines — Interisland ship traffic through the Sasa Wharf here rose 5%, largely due to a privately owned roll-on-roll-off vessel ferrying passengers between Davao City and the nearby Island Garden City of Samal, data from the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA)-Southern Mindanao show. The Mae Wess Ferry terminal, owned by Davao businessman Ronald L. Bangayan, which now deploys three ferries to Samal to cope with holiday and weekend peaks, offset the decline in other domestic vessel traffic, which fell 4% as of July this year after seeing an increase of 5% in the same period last year. ‘Troubles’ The report cited "troubles" that beset regular liners include a Superferry vessel that developed engine problems, the grounding of Sulpicio Lines’ ships in the wake of the M/V Princess of the Stars disaster last June, and the competition posed by airlines with their promo rates. Foreign ship calls, however, posted a 12% increase in the same period, which was a complete turnaround from the 6% contraction recorded last year. "Foreign vessels have become bigger — [by] capacity and lengthwise — and are fast-moving, as stay times in Sasa Wharf have been trimmed by 38%, a positive indication in port language," the report said. Better, but... As of last July, total embarking and disembarking passengers at the Sasa Wharf reached 922,589, compared to 134,214 in June. That number, however, was below the 136,317 passengers recorded by the PPA in same month last year. Virgilio C. Amonia Sr., Maritime Industry Authority regional director for the Davao Region, said the very low rates offered by airline companies drastically affected patronage of shipping firms. He said airlines’ promo rates approximated prices offered by shipping firms, while at the same time cutting travel time from three days via sea to just hours via air travel. To make matters worse, the M/V Princess of the Stars disaster last June also caused travelers to lose confidence in the seaworthiness of interisland vessels. — Joel B. Escovilla, BusinessWorld