Netizens decry chaos at passenger terminals

Last August 25 to 27 was a long weekend holiday and as usual, hundreds of tourists went to Puerto Galera. Many were “repeat visitors” those who want to spend their holidays again in Puerto Galera, supposedly a short distance away from Manila.

But after the MARINA phase out of wooden hulled vessels that took effect last July 1, everyone, tourists and local residents, experienced the confusion, disorder and chaos at Batangas pier. Many took to Facebook to express their anger, dismay and disappointment while many others swore it will be their last time to go back to Puerto Galera.

In a video clip, a tourist said that when they arrived at 6:30 AM in Batangas pier there was no more tickets for the 8:30 AM trip and that the next available trip was 1:30 PM which meant they needed to spend 6 hours of their vacation in Batangas pier.

Another tourist said that there were “ticket scalpers” who seem to be in connivance with some of the authorities at the pier. The scalpers sell the ticket double or even 3 times the amount. The tourist who did not want to queue for hours were left with no choice but to buy the ticket.

Other tourists took the alternate route to Calapan pier – which meant additional 3 to 4 hours of travel time to reach Puerto Galera. At Calapan pier, some were told that there were no more van or jeepneys going to Puerto Galera and that they needed to take trikes at 1000 pesos to go to their destination.

On the return trip, it was the same story of long lines and rip-offs which clearly underscores the fact that there were not enough ferries for tourists and local passengers after the phase out of the wooden-hulled ferries.

In a post in ILPG, Buena Lynne said that “this is definitely not good for our tourist and for our town… The ticket queue is still very long and plenty of people keeps on piling up. It’s still lean season and this is already the scenario. How much worse come summer season? Hope we can have more quality trips available at the soonest time possible.”

Ian Diaper commented: “It is not easy to get to PG. Tourists waste half a day getting here … So is PG a good option for a weekend break? No. And when you do get here road transport is expensive. Balatero to Sabang on trike is 250 pesos.”

Tour operator Sheena Ann commented: “Sad and nakakagalit in a way. Isang grupo ko today nagpasakay na ng Calapan kesa maghintay ng resume ng trips ng hapon. Doble doble gastos kasi mag van pa pa-Puerto, at doble din sa oras ng biyahe.”

However, another netizen expressed his support for the phase-out, Leodegario Lalong Isip Villanueva wrote: “Mabuti nga tinanggal na ung mga bangka… mabuting tangkilikin natin ung malalaking barko kahit mejo mabagal safety ka naman.”

David Rchrd suggested online booking may help and commented: “I think with the extra fastcraft and FastCat coming, it should be enough to serve the route properly. However the ticketing system needs to be upgraded to accept nominative advance bookings. Nobody wants to arrive in Batangas and face the queues, be bounced off full boats or be harassed by pushers or queue for one hour to pay their stupid P30 terminal fee. Nobody from Sabang or White Beach wants to leave home 3 hours early to go buy a ticket in Muelle or Balatero.”

Meanwhile, a reliable source said that an operator of a wooden-hulled ferry company is extremely confident that they will get a reversal of the MARINA ruling and that soon the outrigger ferries may be allowed to sail once more in the Batangas-Puerto Galera route.

The operator, our source, said filed a motion for reconsideration and is asking MARINA to set aside the termination order for the CPC (certificate of public conveyance) of the wooden-hulled ferries.

A CPC is the franchise issued by MARINA for a shipping operator to ferry passengers and cargoes within Philippine waters.

MARINA said that they conducted a market study and determined that the Batangas-Puerto Galera route can be fully served by operators of steel-hulled ships.

By “fully served”, MARINA means the route wherein the public need or demand for water transport is sufficiently met on a daily basis.

The operator, our source added, is questioning the correctness of the “market study” and the subsequent conclusion that the route is fully served.

“As can be surmised from the chaos last August 25, it is clear that there are not enough steel-hulled vessels for the hundreds of passengers of the Batangas-Puerto Galera route.”