Commuters surge in bus terminals on Holy Wednesday

Metro Manila, Philippines - Bus terminals saw a large influx of passengers on Wednesday, April 16, as they hit the road to travel back to their home provinces for the Holy Week.

Commuters rushed to catch trips as Wednesday is the last workday before the long weekend. April 17 and 18, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, respectively, were declared as holidays.

Seats at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) hit near full capacity, prompting some passengers to sit or curl up with their bags on the floor as they waited for their trip.

One of them is Madein Divina, a teacher in Metro Manila who is going home to Sorsogon.

“Wala nang space. So, gawa na lang ng paraan para maging komportable din ‘yung pag-aantay sa bus,” she told NewsWatch Plus.

[Translation: There is no more space. So, I have to improvise to be comfortable while waiting for the bus.]

The terminal’s cooling system cannot keep up with passenger volume.

“Medyo mainit din kasi maano ang panahon. Kasi sa dami ng tao, syempre mainit talaga,” 65-year-old Merly Pollo said, adding that she can tolerate the heat.

[Translation: It is quite humid because of the weather. Also, there are many people, of course, it will be hot.]

Most trips bound for Bicol from PITX were fully booked. But bus operators added more trips.

As of 6 p.m., foot traffic at the terminal reached 153,551. The PITX management projects some 201,000 commuters will go to the transport hub on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, passengers in bus terminals in Cubao, Quezon City braved the sweltering heat as most hubs there were not air-conditioned.

This stretch of Manila’s busiest highway was dotted with long queues of passengers trying to get a ride to their home provinces. The exodus is expected to continue on Maundy Thursday.