Travelers endure long wait times at PITX amid Holy Week rush

Amid the Holy Week travel surge, passengers at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange reported long waiting times for bus rides.

In a report by Mariz Umali for “24 Oras” on Tuesday, passenger Girlie Pajarin shared that she lined up at the ticketing booth for a ride to Daet, Camarines Norte, while her cousin attempted to book online.

Wilmar Binos and his family, accompanied by their pet dog, were headed to Tabaco, Albay to join a religious procession and enjoy the beach.

However, some passengers like Glen Obrado, who was bound for Biliran, Leyte, expressed frustration as his 2 p.m. bus had yet to arrive.

Another passenger, Norma Reveldez, said she was so tired she just wanted to sleep.

PITX stated that buses were scheduled to arrive every 30 minutes, but the volume of travelers caused delays.

Around 200,000 passengers were expected to pass through the terminal on Holy Tuesday.

Several bus lines were fully booked from April 12 to 18.

“Ini-expect po natin dahil maraming pupunta sa terminal na magwa-walk-in. Nagdagdag po tayo ng extra trips and then syempre meron po tayong mga kinuhang special permits from LTFRB,’ said Kolyn Calbasa, PITX senior corporate affairs officer.

(We anticipated the influx of walk-in passengers, so we added extra trips and secured special permits from the LTFRB.)

To maintain safety, authorities set up police assistance desks and conducted random inspections to ensure that drivers and buses were fit for travel. — Mariel Celine Serquiña/DVM, GMA Integrated News